By Brendon DerrA lawsuit brought by two out-of-state investment firms could make it harder for Arizona to protect vulnerable groundwater basins, threatening one of the state’s few tools for safeguarding rural water supplies. “When landowners learn that INA designation procedures may start, some will rush to irrigate large areas of uncleared land.” The Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting has similarly documented spikes in irrigation well applications whenever groundwater regulations appeared imminent. The January ruling nonetheless declared that the Hualapai Valley INA had been illegally established. But before the final order was signed in May, ADWR asked the Arizona Court of Appeals to intervene based on the issue’s “statewide importance.”