How Tucson Fought an Amazon Data Center and Won - More Perfect Union

[Attilatheblond]

1. Zonies know not all businesses are good for the thirsty desert

Back in 23, governor Katie Hobbs announced a deal with a Saudi farming company to grab nearly unlimited ground water to raise alfalfa for horses would NOT be renewed. The former idiot governor was known for making really bad deals.

https://apnews.com/article/saudi-arabia-drought-arizona-alfalfa-water-agriculture-0d13957edaf882690e15c0bd9ccfa59f]

An investigation by the governor’s office found that the foreign-owned farm had violated some of its lease terms. Hobbs called it unacceptable that the farm “continued to pump unchecked amounts of groundwater out of our state while in clear default on their lease.”

Fondomonte Arizona, a subsidiary of Saudi dairy giant Almarai Co., grows alfalfa in Arizona that feeds livestock in the water-stressed Gulf kingdom.

Let me tell you, folks who live in the area are dealing with ground water loss and dry wells because the water table has dropped so much. Most can't afford the steep price for digging deeper to keep water coming into their homes, and they can't sell and move because there is no water coming into their homes. Sink holes due to the lower water table are causing problems with rural roads. But those ponies in Arabia love Arizona alfalfa. Hay here is getting too expensive for the locals to afford.

It's good to have a governor who is teaching us ways to fight corporations that want to suck AZ dry while not actually coming thru with the 'good paying jobs' they promise. Seems corporations like to include the pay to top level management they bring into AZ from other states when they proclaim how helpful they will be to the local work force.