ABSTRACTWater zoning is not new in arid areas. Many States have laws limiting pumping. However, most of the existing ordinances do not achieve their stated purpose. Many enforce conservation of scarce resources for benefit of future users. Some purport to ensure a continuous water supply to the rights holders. Existing ordinances that limit pumping to the so‐called safe yield do not take costs or recoverable benefits into consideration, and the period of use is not stipulated. Therefore, where pumping is regulated under such ordinances, the basins cannot be managed to obtain maximum benefits to present users of the available supply. Two types of ordinances are discussed: general‐purpose and management‐plan ordinances, which are designed to make possible the achievement of specific objectives. Examples are given of how the latter can be designed to: limit stream depletion and protect existing rights; disperse pumping to increase economic return; force conjunctive use of all land, mineral, and water resources; and establish production quotas to insure optimum economic return to all users during a predetermined p
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