Water water everywhere, and not a drop to drink

WATERING THE WEST (Chapter 2) Return to Unit List

The following Web sites offer a variety of perspectives on how to manage the most precious resource in the arid American West. Demand for scarce water is increasing throughout the west as the urban population increases and economic activities shift from natural resource extraction to light industry and services. While agriculture is still the dominant user of western water, farmers are facing increasing pressure from urban areas for water rights, and in a situation where water rights are bought and sold in a market environment (though not exactly an "open" market, where information is available to all sellers and buyers), smaller farmers often find themselves priced out of the market for water. And water is big business in the west; each year up to $3 billion in water is bought and sold in the American West. Agriculture in the interior west, one should remember, is made possible almost entirely by irrigation. Similarly, many urban areas receive their water after it has traveled vast distances through tunnels, pipes, and canals. For example, in the Colorado-Big Thompson irrigation project—which diverts water from the upper reaches of the Colorado River through a series of tunnels to the eastern slope of the continental divide—municipal water rights had by the year 2000 surpassed agricultural water rights for the first time, meaning that over half of the diverted water now goes to cities and towns. When the Colorado-Big Thompson project began in 1957, cities and towns consumed about 17 percent of the diverted water, and 83 percent went to agriculture. According to the Atlas of the New West, if only half the agricultural water throughout the West were shifted to municipal consumption at current urban use rates, the eleven western states—now with nearly 60 million people—could support, with water at least, 200 million more people!

Explore these issues and more at the following sites:

http://www.centerwest.org/futures/shape/water.html — See the hundreds of dams, aqueducts, and canals that make the water diversions possible.

http://www.centerwest.org/futures/ — Explore other aspects of development in the American West.

http://www.centerwest.org/publications/tracking_site/index.html — Click on the "Infrastructure Menu" to see maps on western water consumption by state and comparisons of agricultural and municipal water use by state.

Which state has the highest percentage of agricultural water use?

Why do western states consume so much water, per capita, compared to the rest of the country?

As the population of the Western U.S. continues to grow, what steps will have to be taken by state and local governments to ensure sufficient water supplies?

Aside from openly refusing new residents from moving into a town, how can Western governments maintain a balance between population growth and limited water supplies?

http://waterinfo.org/ — Explore the Colorado Water Information Program's Web site for tips on water use, conservation, and management.

Additional interesting articles to read:

"Seven states look at the legacy of the Colorado", from Watershed
"Will the Met wring the west dry", from High County News
"The Rio Grande's unsung diplomat", from High County News