One of my points for the Peak Oil Perfect Storm was water depletion. This was written by me in the summer of 1992.
THE COLORADO RIVER
Where it comes from, where it goes.
It's uses, it's abuses, it's history, it's future.
In 1869, Major John Wesley Powell foretold the limits of western water when he wrote, "All the waters of all the arid lands will eventually be taken from their natural channels."
The Colorado River system begins high on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. Melting snow gathers in swift running streams to start the 1,450 mile journey to the sea. Although, except for an occasional local flood flow, no water has reached the Gulf of California in the last thirty-five years. The upper Colorado-formerly called the Grand River-finds it's origin near Rocky Mountain National Park. The actual headwaters of the Colorado lie in the Wind River Range of Wyoming. There, the Green River hurtles south to meet the upper Colorado in Canyonlands National Park. The San Juan River, which drains southwestern Colorado, joins the flow at Lake Powell. The only other major tributary, the Gila River in Arizona, no longer contributes to the Colorado due to heavy use.
At Lee's Ferry, just below the Glen Canyon Dam on Lake Powell, we find the dividing line between the upper and lower Colorado River basins. From here, the river makes its headlong rush through Grand Canyon National Park into the placid waters of Lake Mead, Lake Mojave, and Lake Havasu. From Lake Havasu, to the Mexican border, water is diverted into canals that snake across the desert to agricultural fields and urban areas. This water is used at least three times before it finds its way into the Salton Sea as agricultural run-off.
Ninety percent of the water diverted from the Colorado River channel is used for agricultural irrigation. The Imperial Valley in California is the single largest user, with most of the land being used to raise alfalfa. This crop is also the most water intensive, requiring 6 acre feet/year as opposed to .5 acre feet/year for lettuce.
The 1922 Colorado River Compact divided the river among the upper basin states: Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico-and those in the lower basin: California, Nevada, and Arizona. On the basis of river flow of the 1920's, each basin was allocated 7.5 million acre feet annually. A 1944 treaty guaranteed an additional 1.5 million acre feet to the country of Mexico. However, the yearly flow of the Colorado was grossly overestimated. The allocations required a yearly average flow of 16.5 million acre feet. Depending upon whom you ask, the river has been flowing at a rate of somewhere between 13.2 MAF to 14.8 MAF since 1930. During the present drought, that figure has dropped to about 9 million acre feet a year. Evaporation from reservoirs removes an additional 2 million acre feet.
Lake Powell reached full pool in June of 1980, seventeen years after the dam was completed. The lake has now retreated to 1971 levels with projections to go much lower. This loss is nearly half of Lake Powell's 27 million acre foot capacity. In 1990, less than 5.5 million acre feet flowed into Lake Powell, not nearly the 8.25 million acre feet that must be released into Lake Mead each year. As a result, Lake Powell is currently 76 feet below full pool. In drought years, the lower basin receives its allocation first, resulting in a shortfall for the upper basin. Even so, Lake Mead has been drawn down 52 feet below full pool.
As long as some states use less than their share, others can siphon off more. But, as populations rise, and the states in both basins complete water projects, the Colorado will be virtually tapped out. If the drought continues, water policy in the Southwest will change dramatically, and consequently, so will our lifestyle.
America has been historically a nation of beef eaters. No other single activity has altered the shape and texture of western lands, than the raising of cattle. Nor does any other activity consume more water. If real reductions in the consumption of water in the West are to be achieved, our production of water intensive crops, like alfalfa and cotton, will have to be severely curtailed. It has been estimated that a 7 percent reduction in agricultural water use would provide a 100 percent increase for urban use. While urban use accounts for only about 6 percent of Colorado River water, nearly 50 percent of that figure goes to water lawns. This too, will have to change. The Colorado River is a finite resource. Farmers and city dwellers cannot possibly both be satisfied.
The West's long tug-of-war over water will soon become the most serious confrontation in over 100 years. Agriculture has been the biggest beneficiary of the Colorado's water because the farmers got there first. Western water law has its roots in the concept that whoever could put the water to beneficial use first, had first rights to it. Cheap, federally subsidized water grows alfalfa, which is fed to beef cattle in the seven states of the Colorado River Basin. These seven states, including those portions of the states lying outside the basin and not receiving Colorado River water, produce only 13 percent of the total value of the nation's beef. The Reclamation Act of 1902 was enacted to help settle the West, not provide a subsidy in perpetuity.
Monte L. Myers
National Park Ranger
Yellowstone National Park
When I wrote the initial thread on Wed Sep 08, 2004, the lake was a little over 9 MAF. Since that time, it has dropped as low as 7.9MAF
08-APR-2005 3555.10 7956023 9835 13986
After historical high rainfall, the lake is still below the Sept numbers. When I wrote this piece the lake was 76 feet below full pool of 3700’. Now it is 143’ below full pool.
20-MAR-2005 3557.01 8097834 9573 6806
http://www.usbr.gov/uc/water/rsvrs/ops/crsp_40_gc.html
Remember Liebig's Law: "The
least abundant necessity determines the environmental carrying capacity of any given species." If it's not energy, it may soon be water.
A Saudi saying, "My father rode a camel. I drive a car. My son flies a jet-plane. His son will ride a camel."
by MonteQuest » Sun 17 Apr 2005, 10:52:06 
Yes, doesn't it seem strange that no matter what the resource, people think it is only about supply/demand and meeting it?
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