Saudi Arabian Lobbyist elected to Maricopa county supervisors, has influence over AZ Water

MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - The water crisis here in Arizona goes from bad to worse.

In a post election story that might have fallen through the cracks, it's been discovered that Saudi Arabia has their hands all over our water. As a lawsuit for control of the water by multiple counties, including ours, rolls on, the Intercept discovered that a lobbyist, Thomas Galvin, for a Saudi Arabian company got elected to the Maricopa County Board of supervisors this past election season.

A part of the problem is that Almorai, a Saudi Arabian company, has been gobbling up parcels of land to use export alfalfa feed to strengthen their farming output in their home country.

They even bought 10,000 acres of farmland in Vicksburg out by Blythe. And water keeps getting diverted to Queen Creek in Maricopa County.

Galvin, while claiming no further involvement with Rose Law Group, the firm that's received direct payments from the Saudi company, spoke out against a bill that would allow for state oversight in water levels.

It's an important provision considering that our water is at the deadpool level, meaning the water is so low that it's almost touching the bottom of the well.

KYMA spoke with Daniel Boguslaw, a reporter for the investigative, non-mainstream alternative news source called The Intercept, as he did some digging and broke the story. Galvin's explanation for his opposition?

The efforts to bar a foreign entity from having water rights, according to the new supervisor, is inspired by racism.

Boguslaw tells KYMA, "At worst this could be racist targeting, foreign owned farm. That's not what this was about, this was about basic data collection.

There was a full lobbyist press in his testimony, and he was paid by the company do whatever they can, to make whatever argument they can, to forge their interest. So you see a breakdown a regulatory breakdown, a political breakdown, at every level from state to county."