The Altar Valley Conservation Alliance, in partnership with the Pima County Regional Flood Control District, will use a series of nature-based features in the Altar Wash watershed, southwest of Tucson, Arizona, to slow flows, improve groundwater infiltration, and create surface water habitat for wildlife. Under current conditions, stormwater from uplands in the Wash flows downhill quickly to the Santa Cruz River causing severe erosion. The Alliance will install low-tech Natural Infrastructure in Dryland Streams (NIDS) facilities made of rock, wood, and earth, across 8,985 acres of the wash, which will slow the runoff, reducing erosion and retaining water in the Wash for longer periods of time. The project will also enhance drought and climate change resilience, reduce downstream flood impacts, and increase the sustainability of agricultural operations. These interventions and site-locations were prioritized in the 2022 Altar Valley Watershed Plan that was developed as part of a previous WaterSMART Cooperative Watershed Management Program grant. Learn more about the program here.
