Agricultural Water Manager Perspectives on Water Markets in Utah

ABSTRACT Irrigation organizations (IOs) in the arid US West manage water supply, own water rights, and deliver water shares to their users. In delivering most of the water used for irrigated agriculture, the influence of the water managers who run them on water futures cannot be overstated. Yet, the perspectives of both water managers and IOs regarding nimble strategies for water management under scarcity remain understudied. One water management strategy, water banking, was introduced in Utah in 2020, but formal uptake has been slow. Using data collected from individual agricultural water managers within IOs in Utah, we show that water managers are familiar with water markets, but that they do not believe their IOs are interested in increasing the number they engage in. Further, we find that most IOs would have little to no water to place in a future water bank, and that over half of the water managers surveyed believe none of their shareholders would be interested in participating. Finally, government meddling, fear of forfeiture, and economic impacts are all barriers to banking, but water infrastructure improvements might act as bridges to finding more “wet” water for banking and other transactions. This study helps clarify whether and how water markets might be integrated into a more secure water future for Utah and the arid West. While water banking remains one tool for flexible and adaptive water management, we underscore that barriers to banking may limit its uptake in Utah.