Choice Article
![Picture](/uploads/3/8/7/5/38751573/9397980.jpg?250)
An Example of Water Overuse and Its Effects
The article "Historic "Pulse Flow" Brings Water to Parched Colorado River Delta" is about the issue of overuse of water from the Colorado River. In an effort to bring life back to the desert that the Colorado River Delta has become, the US and Mexican governments negotiated a "pulse" in the river's flow. On March 23, 2014, a pulse of water was to be released from Lake Mead through Hoover Dam, and would make its way to the delta, temporarily flooding it and restoring some life.This was made possible by the agreement known as "Minute 319," which allows Mexico to store water in reservoirs in the US.
The issue that this event helps to address is the overuse of the Colorado River.
This overuse is created by the combination of several factors. One, dams along the Colorado keep water from reaching the end. Two, increased agriculture in the naturally desolate land requires almost 70% of the water used. Three, cities and urban areas take up more and more of the river as they grow. This overuse is unsustainable, and may cause the Colorado River to run dry.
The article "Historic "Pulse Flow" Brings Water to Parched Colorado River Delta" is about the issue of overuse of water from the Colorado River. In an effort to bring life back to the desert that the Colorado River Delta has become, the US and Mexican governments negotiated a "pulse" in the river's flow. On March 23, 2014, a pulse of water was to be released from Lake Mead through Hoover Dam, and would make its way to the delta, temporarily flooding it and restoring some life.This was made possible by the agreement known as "Minute 319," which allows Mexico to store water in reservoirs in the US.
The issue that this event helps to address is the overuse of the Colorado River.
This overuse is created by the combination of several factors. One, dams along the Colorado keep water from reaching the end. Two, increased agriculture in the naturally desolate land requires almost 70% of the water used. Three, cities and urban areas take up more and more of the river as they grow. This overuse is unsustainable, and may cause the Colorado River to run dry.
Colorado River
![Picture](/uploads/3/8/7/5/38751573/6971043.jpg?250)
The Colorado River is a vital part of the Southwestern United States. However, it is currently being used at an unsustainable rate. If we continue to abuse the river, it could very well slow to a trickle or dry out completely eventually. This is a very pressing issue because it not only affects the population and lifestyle of people living in the US, but also the animals that depend upon it for water, the plants that depend upon it, Mexico, who uses water from the Colorado as well, and even people living in many foreign countries such as China that depend upon crops irrigated with water from the Colorado. It also affects the water cycle because evaporation from the river and the ocean it feeds provides water to countless other places.
One way we can reduce usage of this natural resource is to cut down on the amount we use for landscaping, fountains, and other useless things that do nothing but look pretty and waste water. There is a reason why the southwest is naturally so dry; there just isn't enough water to support green grass, large trees, green bushes, and other common landscaping that we believe are essential and divert precious water to take care of.
It isn't just the Colorado River that is being over tapped. Las Vegas, one of the top consumers of the Colorado's water, is growing so quickly that it "still doesn't have enough water" - It is competing with ranchers in Hiko, Nevada for water rights for springs IN Hiko, two hours drive North. It is too much to ask that we stop all pointless use of water, but even if major cities and suburbs only replaced some of their landscaping with more sustainable xeriscaping, it could make a huge impact on the Colorado River.
One way we can reduce usage of this natural resource is to cut down on the amount we use for landscaping, fountains, and other useless things that do nothing but look pretty and waste water. There is a reason why the southwest is naturally so dry; there just isn't enough water to support green grass, large trees, green bushes, and other common landscaping that we believe are essential and divert precious water to take care of.
It isn't just the Colorado River that is being over tapped. Las Vegas, one of the top consumers of the Colorado's water, is growing so quickly that it "still doesn't have enough water" - It is competing with ranchers in Hiko, Nevada for water rights for springs IN Hiko, two hours drive North. It is too much to ask that we stop all pointless use of water, but even if major cities and suburbs only replaced some of their landscaping with more sustainable xeriscaping, it could make a huge impact on the Colorado River.
Facts from video
- Less that 1% of the water on Earth is available to us. The other 99% is either in the ocean, too salty to use, or frozen in the ice caps.
- more than a billion people don't have access to safe drinking water
- The average American uses two times more water than the average human.
the AMERICAN NILE
The Colorado River has been called "the American Nile." It is the largest source of freshwater in the southwestern United States, as the Nile is the larges source for Eastern Egypt. One difference is, however, that the Colorado River has been so overused that it doesn't even reach the ocean anymore. Dams, over farming, and unsustainable large and lavish cities are just a few of the causes. Historically, the Colorado and it's tributaries would carry hundreds of thousands of tons of silt southwest to the sea. Dams have stopped almost all of that flow. Another issue is that the dams unnaturally refrigerate the water, creating unfavorable conditions for wildlife. The amount of water required for farming and sustaining lawns and golf courses in the normally arid southwest is more than the river can sustain.
There are several initiatives already in place and that are being suggested that researchers believe can help alleviate the strain put on the Colorado River. One that is already in place is Minute 319 - a part of the treaty that governs the sharing of the Colorado between Mexico and the US - that, in November 2012, caused 1% of historic flows of the Colorado River be released to rejuvenate the dry, dead Colorado Delta. Another initiative in place is called xeriscaping, which replaces traditional landscaping plants with ones that don't require much water. An initiative that has been suggested is replacing traditional sprinklers (which lose a huge amount of water to evaporation) with drip irrigation techniques, which have already been implemented near the Nile in Egypt to conserve water.
There are several initiatives already in place and that are being suggested that researchers believe can help alleviate the strain put on the Colorado River. One that is already in place is Minute 319 - a part of the treaty that governs the sharing of the Colorado between Mexico and the US - that, in November 2012, caused 1% of historic flows of the Colorado River be released to rejuvenate the dry, dead Colorado Delta. Another initiative in place is called xeriscaping, which replaces traditional landscaping plants with ones that don't require much water. An initiative that has been suggested is replacing traditional sprinklers (which lose a huge amount of water to evaporation) with drip irrigation techniques, which have already been implemented near the Nile in Egypt to conserve water.