Salt River Project (SRP) announced today that Apple has joined as a partner supporting SRP’s Resilient Water and Forest Initiative, part of a continuing effort to ensure water resiliency. The company will support the initiative’s restoration of nearly 30,000 acres of forests over the next 10 years, helping strengthen a critical water supply for Central Arizona communities, including the Town of Payson and the Phoenix metropolitan area.
The project centers around the strategic thinning of forests located in northern Arizona that are at a high risk for severe wildfires. This includes forests around the C.C. Cragin Dam and Reservoir near Payson, Ariz., an area which supplies water to the C.C. Cragin Reservoir.
Apple’s support of the thinning project is expected to result in 1.8 billion gallons of water benefits over the next 20 years.
“Apple’s leadership and long-term commitment to watershed health will help protect Central Arizona communities and the water supply for the Phoenix metropolitan area,” said Elvy Barton, SRP Water and Forest Sustainability Senior Manager. “In terms of acreage, this is the largest corporate investment in Arizona watershed restoration efforts. This investment is critical because it addresses the wildfire risks of an entire watershed.”
SRP manages the water supply for much of the Valley – most of which comes from 8.3 million acres of land in northern Arizona. Snowfall and rain provide the water that travels through the watershed into SRP reservoirs, which is then delivered to 2.5 million homes and businesses in the Phoenix metropolitan area via an extensive network of canals.
SRP is working with partners like Apple to provide funding that will allow state and federal agencies to strategically remove smaller trees. This will enable larger, healthier trees to thrive and reduce the potential for catastrophic wildfires. Strategic forest thinning helps reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfires while protecting nearby communities, water infrastructure and water supplies.
Strategic thinning also helps store more carbon in healthy trees; creates a healthier ecosystem more resilient to the effects of climate change and drought; protects and enhances wildlife habitats; and supports local economies by bringing jobs to the area.
This partnership is made possible by an innovative collaboration that allows SRP to help fund work performed by the U.S. Forest Service and the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management to accelerate the scale of strategic forest thinning across Arizona’s forests.
The project is also part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 10-year strategy aimed at addressing the wildfire crisis by treating critical firesheds with the help of partners. Firesheds are large, forested landscapes with a high likelihood that an ignition could expose communities and infrastructure to wildfire. Payson and nearby communities are within one of the top firesheds in the country.
SRP has committed to increasing forest restoration efforts through partnerships, education and supporting the forest products industry to thin 800,000 acres by 2035.
About SRP
SRP is a community-based, not-for-profit public power utility and the largest electricity provider in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area, serving approximately 1.1 million customers. SRP provides water to about half of the Valley’s residents, delivering more than 244 billion gallons of water (750,000 acre-feet) each year, and manages a 13,000-square-mile watershed that includes an extensive system of reservoirs, wells, canals and irrigation laterals.
