The Colorado River highlights Arizona's river country. At the state's western border, the river and lakes separate Arizona from California and Nevada with 300 miles of shoreline. As the river spills from the northern part of the state through the majestic Grand Canyon, it has become an aquatic paradise for those people looking for a reprieve from the ferocious desert sun. Thousands now raft, sail, ski, fish, swim, float in innertubes, camp beside it, rent houseboats on it, lease river front cabanas or participate in numerous year-round boating and fishing competitions. The Colorado River also plays a major role in the state's water supply and resource management.
Water is Arizona's most important natural resource.
Ensuring a dependable water supply now and into the next century is of tremendous importance. To meet this goal, the state has passed one of the most aggressive groundwater management codes in the nation to ensure the efficient use of the limited groundwater supplies. In fact, CAP is the state's single largest resource for renewable water supplies and manager of long-term water resources. CAP is the vehicle that will allow Arizona to fully utilize its 2.8 million acre-foot allocation of Colorado River water. At optimum operational capacity, CAP will deliver an average of 1.5 million acre-feet of river water to central and southern Arizona.