Reconciling urban growth with water scarcity: Limits to adaptation or opportunity for policy innovation?

Reconciling urban growth with water scarcity: Limits to adaptation or opportunity for policy innovation? Reconciling urban growth with water scarcity: Limits to adaptation or opportunity for policy innovation? We use document analysis and qualitative interviews to analyze three case studies of urban growth under water scarcity: Scottsdale (Rio Verde Development), Buckeye (Douglas Ranch development), and Apache Junction (Superstition Vistas). We evaluate policy according to implicit/explicit rights and responsibilities for provisioning, relative allocation of burden of risk and risk management and implications for financial rewards from such allocation across and among public and private actors6. We inductively code municipal planning documents, city council and water board meeting minutes, development permits and plans, municipal HOA regulations, and water tariff and affordability policies and discussions. Semi-structured interviews with developers, water managers and city council members, and civil society actors representing residents of different sectors will give insights into perceptions on the implications of policy change. We leverage ASUs Sustainable Cities Network to connect with city managers implementing drought plans, and ASUs Kyle Center for Water Policy for policy access and insight.