Arizona’s watersheds play a vital role in how we live, work, and recreate. ADEQ protects and sustains Arizona’s watersheds by monitoring their health, identifying exceedances of surface water quality standards, and implementing impactful projects that improve surface water quality.

ADEQ works primarily through voluntary methods to preserve and restore the quality of Arizona’s rivers and streams. Methods are diverse and include:

• On-the-ground remediation projects
• Nonpoint source pollution mitigation
• Citizen Science Program – Arizona Water Watch
• AZ Community Science Alliance
• Watershed plans and setting Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs)

Nonpoint Source Pollution Mitigation

Nonpoint source pollution is non-regulated pollution that occurs when runoff from rainfall or snowmelt travels over land, bringing with it various contaminants like nitrogen, metals, and bacteria. The contaminated runoff is then deposited into streams, lakes, and rivers. 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides states and Tribes funding to address nonpoint source pollution under Clean Water Act Section 319. 

ADEQ uses this funding to implement on-the-ground projects across the state | Learn More >

Citizen Science Program – Arizona Water Watch

The Arizona Community Science Alliance (AZCSA) is ADEQ’s community science and education program driven by community scientists around the state. AZCSA provides opportunities for volunteers of all ages to engage in stream sampling, mapping, flow measurements, and trash clean-ups to help reduce pollution in streams, lakes, and rivers | View AZCSA Page >

Watershed Plans and TMDLs

Under the Clean Water Act, states identify and list impaired water bodies, or those water bodies not meeting surface water quality standards. States then develop watershed plans and/or set Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). A TMDL establishes the maximum amount of a pollutant a water body can have without exceeding standards. TMDLs in conjunction with watershed plans provide planning tools for restoring surface water quality | Learn More >