A Cooperative Extension center and a research unit in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the WRRC is the designated state water resources research center established under the 1964 Federal Water Resources Research Act.

The WRRC conducts water policy research and analysis, and its information transfer activities include publications, conferences, lectures, and seminars. Water news and information are provided to the academic community, water professionals, elected and appointed officials, students and the public.

The WRRC is one of five University of Arizona water centers responsible for implementing the Water Sustainability Program, a component of the Water, Energy and Environmental Solutions (WEES), which receives funding from The University of Arizona’s Technology and Research Initiative Fund (TRIF).

The National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR)

Water issues affect the United States in important ways. The National Institutes for Water Resources (NIWR) plays a major role in addressing the unique water-related concerns of the individual states and the nation as a whole by providing a national platform for collaboration. A Water Resources Research Institute is located in each State, the District of Colombia, and the U.S. Territories of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Guam, for a total of 54 institutes.  The NIWR network represents the only authorized federal-state program focused on applied water resources research, education, training, and outreach. The WRRC is Arizona's water institute.