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City Council Report Date: April 20, 2026 To: City Council Through: Marc Heirshberg, Assistant City Manager From: Joseph Giudice, Water Resources Director Subject: SRP-CAP Interconnection Facility (SCIF) Downstream Impact Study Intergovernmental Agreement Citywide Purpose and Recommendation The purpose of this report is to request authorization to enter into an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with the Town of Gilbert and the city of Chandler to engage WaterWorks Engineers to study the potential effects of the Salt River Project (SRP) Central Arizona Project (CAP Interconnection Facility (SCIF) on downstream users. For downstream users, this study will demonstrate impacts to water treatment facilities infrastructure and operational parameters. Staff recommends approval. The Town of Gilbert is scheduled to consider this IGA at their council meeting on April 7, 2026, and the City of Chandler is scheduled to consider this IGA at their council meeting on April 6, 2026. Background The Salt River Project (SRP)/Central Arizona Project (CAP) Interconnection Facility (SCIF) project aims to enable SRP water to be pumped into the CAP canal. The SCIF would allow the use of existing infrastructure and provide operational flexibility for two of the largest water providers in Arizona. If implemented, the SCIF would allow water stored in SRP reservoirs to be transported to customers with water treatment plants outside SRP’s service territory. Mesa, in cooperation with the Town of Gilbert and the City of Chandler, is undertaking this study collaboratively to leverage cost efficiencies and shared technical resources due to the cities’ close proximity to the SCIF. The Town of Gilbert is acting as the lead agency for this study. Discussion The SRP delivers water to the City of Mesa and other downstream users through the SRP canal delivery system from the Salt River and Verde River watershed. The CAP delivers water to the City of Mesa and other downstream users through the CAP canal system from the Colorado River watershed. To improve the ability of Mesa and other downstream users to move water more effectively to their respective water treatment facilities, SRP and CAP are evaluating a project to build a canal and pump system that connects their two separate canal systems through a project entitled the SCIF. Water quality from the two different water systems differs, therefore this study 2 is being commissioned by the three municipalities to evaluate and understand how this project will affect the infrastructure and operations at individual water treatment facilities. The City of Mesa is evaluating for water treatment impacts at its Brown Road Facility and Signal Butte Facility. Alternatives The Council could choose to take no action. This alternative is not recommended as it would require the city of Mesa to be reactive to water quality changes after implementation of the SCIF project is complete. This could risk damage to infrastructure, poor water quality and the potential for water quality violations from the Brown Road and Signal Butte water treatment facilities. Another alternative is to not sign the agreement and have Mesa conduct its own downstream impact study on just the Brown Road Water Treatment Plant, and the Signal Butte Water Treatment Plant. Under this alternative, the City of Mesa would bear the full cost of the study rather than sharing the cost with two other cities. Fiscal Impact The total cost of the study is $145,840, which will be split evenly amongst the three cities. Funding is available in the Utility Fund.