[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 160 (Wednesday, December 12, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H6711-H6712]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1210
                TOMBSTONE, ARIZONA, WATER SUPPLY FIASCO

  (Mr. GOSAR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. GOSAR. Last week, the ninth circuit court heard a case regarding 
Tombstone, Arizona's right to access its water supply. Last year, a 
devastating combination of wildfires and monsoons struck Tombstone, 
leaving only 3 of its 25 springs in operation. Tombstone has been 
engaged in a yearlong standoff with the Federal Government over the 
repairs that will restore the town's water supply because those springs 
are in wilderness areas and they are prohibited from using mechanized 
equipment to make the necessary repairs.
  This situation is not unique. A similar disaster occurred in northern 
Arizona after the 2010 Schultz Pass fire.

[[Page H6712]]

The Inner Basin pipeline, infrastructure that delivers water to 
Flagstaff, was severed during catastrophic floods that followed the 
fire. In our case, a lawsuit wasn't necessary, but it took my team and 
the city over a year to persuade multiple agencies to allow for 
repairs. Last month, I took the first sip of water out of the repaired 
infrastructure with Mayor Jerry Nabours.
  Our communities shouldn't need their Congressman or a lawsuit to make 
basic repairs to infrastructure. The Federal Government should work 
with us, not against us, to preserve western water supplies.

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