PHOENIX — Attorneys for a Saudi-owned alfalfa farm want a judge to toss a bid by Attorney General Kris Mayes to halt its pumping of groundwater, saying what she is doing is illegal.
In new filings in Maricopa County Superior Court, the lawyers for Fondomonte Arizona point out that the state is alleging that the company has created a “nuisance” with the amount it is pumping. Mayes’ claim is based on the legal theory that the amount being withdrawn fits that definition by draining the water that others who live in the area need.
But the lawyers are telling Judge Scott Minter that ignores a state law that says agricultural operations conducted with good practices “are presumed to be reasonable and do not constitute a nuisance unless the agricultural operation has a substantial adverse effect on the public health and safety.” Mayes, in her original lawsuit filed last year, did allege Fondomonte’s operation is affecting public health and safety…