Aligning Community, Conservation, and Defense Priorities in the Fort Huachuca Sentinel Landscape
The Fort Huachuca Sentinel Landscape in Cochise County, AZ, faces critical groundwater depletion challenges that threaten natural ecosystems, the long-term viability of military operations, and the local economy.
QV partnered with a diverse coalition of local stakeholders to develop and finance groundwater recharge projects that support climate resilience, protect the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA), and preserve Fort Huachuca’s mission readiness.
The initiative has secured $4 million-plus in new funding to date for critical groundwater recharge projects and long-term monitoring / management. And we built the road-map for an $80 million endowment for sustained conservation and mission resilience. This model is primed for replication nationally.
Problem
Local leaders and stakeholders in the Fort Huachuca Sentinel Landscape faced a complex set of challenges: shrinking groundwater reserves in the SPRNCA threatened riparian ecosystems, local agriculture, and the regional economy, while also jeopardizing the military mission’s long-term viability. Existing funding mechanisms, mainly public conservation grants, proved insufficient to sustain necessary operations, monitoring, or infrastructure investment over the long term.
Additionally, incentives and priorities across agencies, landowners, and military partners were often misaligned. QV was brought in specifically to solve this funding and coordination gap by increasing access to grant funding and evaluating innovative financing approaches that could support both immediate conservation efforts and long-term stewardship.
Approach
Through collaboration with the City of Sierra Vista, the Cochise Conservation & Recharge Network (CCRN), the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), Arizona’s Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA), and Department of Defense partners, QV structured a blended-finance approach to accelerate project implementation and drive innovative approaches for future monitoring and maintenance funding needs.
QV worked closely with the key partners, Sierra Vista and CCRN, to develop a phased investment plan. The team secured $1 million from NFWF’s America the Beautiful Challenge to fund SPRNCA protection and monitoring efforts, and assisted in structuring a successful $3 million grant application to Arizona’s WIFA for stormwater-to-aquifer recharge projects.
Beyond near-term funding, QV collaborated with local leadership to model and structure an $80 million endowment designed to fund perpetual operations, maintenance, and monitoring to address historically unfunded long-term needs. The endowment structure was approved locally, and fundraising is currently underway. This work leveraged QV’s expertise in water infrastructure finance, ecological monitoring, and cross-sector partnership design, bringing a novel, integrated value-add that positioned the project for broader replicability across other Sentinel Landscapes.
Impact
To date, the initiative has secured more than $4 million in new funding, enabling critical groundwater recharge projects and establishing the foundation for long-term monitoring and management.
Local partners now have a roadmap to create an $80 million stewardship endowment, unlocking opportunities for sustained conservation impact and ensuring Fort Huachuca’s mission resilience.
Looking ahead, the model pioneered here is primed for replication nationally across other Sentinel Landscapes . By layering grants, infrastructure funding, and stewardship capital, this approach not only delivers measurable groundwater protection outcomes but also demonstrates a scalable strategy for aligning climate resilience, defense readiness, and community well-being.