For years, the water table has been dropping beneath thousands of acres of desert farmland in western Arizona, where a Saudi-owned dairy company has been allowed to pump unlimited amounts of groundwater to grow hay for its cows. But the company and other landowners in the area will now face limits under a decision by state officials to impose regulation. … After conducting a review, the state Department of Water Resources designated the Ranegras Plain area, located 100 miles west of Phoenix, as a new “active management area” to preserve the groundwater. …The state’s action will prohibit landowners from irrigating any additional farmland in this part of La Paz County and require those with high-capacity wells to start reporting how much water they use. It also will bring other changes, forming a local advisory council and requiring a plan to reduce water use.

Other groundwater news around the West:

• AP News: Drought-stricken Arizona moves to curb groundwater use in more rural areas
• SJV Water (Bakersfield, Calif.): Fresno County well owners get more time to register wells, but not much