subsequent active management area; designation

HB 2479 establishes criteria for Arizona to designate new groundwater management areas beyond the initial ones. It allows the director to create "subsequent active management areas" if groundwater preservation is needed, land subsidence threatens property or storage, or water quality is degrading. The bill requires these areas to cover entire groundwater basins (not partial sections), with exceptions for northern Arizona's regional aquifers. This directly affects groundwater basins meeting the specified criteria by imposing management practices to protect water resources.