It is a minimum of 1,067 miles from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River if it could be built in a fairly straight line (St. Louis to Grand Junction, Colorado, based on the route of. ", Westford of Southern California's Metropolitan Water District agreed. Every year, NAWAPA would deliver 158 million acre-feet of water to the US, Canada, and Mexico more than 10 times the annual flow of the Colorado River. Page Contact Information: Missouri Water Data Support Team Page Last Modified: 2023-03-04 08:46:14 EST Still, its physically possible. . He said hes open to one but doesnt think its necessary. It was the Bureau of Reclamation. California wants to build a $16 billion pipeline to draw water out of the Sacramento River Delta and down to the southern part of the state, but critics say the project would deprive Delta farmers of water and destroy local ecosystems. China, unlike the US, is unencumbered by NEPA, water rights and democratic processes in general. About 60% of the region remains in some form of drought, continuing a decades-long spiral into water scarcity. They also concluded environmental and permitting reviews would take decades. No. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Unrecognizable. Lake Mead, a lifeline for water in Los Angeles and the West, tips toward crisis. But, as water scarcity in the West gets more desperate, the hurdles could be overcome one day. Martinez, an engineer who oversaw the construction of pipelines in the Sierra Nevada for Southern California Edison, agrees a 1,500-mile pipeline from the Mississippicould physically be built. To the editor: The states near the Gulf of Mexico are often flooded with too much water, while the Southwest is suffering a long-term drought. Arizonas main active management areas are in Maricopa, Pinal, Pima, and Santa Cruz counties, leaving much of rural Arizona water use unregulated. continue to approve surf waveparks and "beachfront" developments in the desert, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. California uses 34 million acre-feet of water per year for agriculture. Letters to the Editor: Antigovernment ideology isnt working for snowed-in mountain towns, Letters to the Editor: Ignore Marjorie Taylor Greene? One method for simulating streamflow and base flow, random forest (RF) models, was developed from the data at gaged sites and, in turn, was . The Nevada Legislature is considering a bill that, if passed, would require restaurants to only provide water upon customer request. Photos of snowfall around northern Arizona. Asked what might be the requirements and constraints of a pipeline from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman Gene Pawliksaid, Since (the Army Corps) has not done a formal study related to the use of pipelines to move water between watersheds, we cannot speculate on the details or cost of such projects.. Developed in 1964 by engineer Ralph Parsons and his Pasadena-basedParsons Corporation,the plan would provide 75million acre-feet of water to arid areas inCanada, the United States and Mexico. No one wants to leave the western states without water, said Melissa Scanlan, a freshwater sciences professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Water thieves abound in dry California. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); A nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. . The actual costs to build such a pipeline today would likely be orders of magnitude higher, thanks to inflation and inevitable construction snags. Parsons said theplanwould replenishthe upper Missouri and Mississippi Rivers during dry spells, increase hydropower along the Columbia Riverand stabilize the Great Lakes. Almost two decades ago, when Million was working on a masters thesis, he happened upon a map that showed the Green River making a brief detour into Colorado on its way through Utah. Stories of similar projects often share the same ending, from proposals in Iowa and Minnesota to those between Canada and the United States. The pipeline would provide the Colorado River basin with 600,000 acre-feet of water annually, which could serve roughly a million single-family homes. and planned for completion in 2050, it willdivert 44.8 billion cubic metersof water annually to major cities and agricultural and industrial centers in the parchednorth. Under the analyzed scenario, water would be conveyed to Colorados Front Range and areas of New Mexico to help fulfill water needs. And contrary to Siefkes' claims, experts said, the silty river flows provide sediment critical to shore up the rapidly disappearing Louisiana coast andbarrier islands chewed to bits by hurricanes and sea rise. The resulting fresh water would bepiped northto the thirsty state. We've had relatively rich resources for so long,we've never really had to deal withthis before, andwe don't want to change.". Historian Ted Steinberg said itsummed up "the sheer arrogance and imperial ambitions of the modern hydraulic West.". All rights reserved. My water, your water. It's the lowest level since the lake was filled in the. What goes into the cat-and-mouse game of forecasting Colorados avalanche risks? California Gov. For him, thatincludessetting aside at leastportions of the so-called "Law of the River," a complicated, century-old set of legal agreements that guarantees farmers in Southern California the largest share of water. In the 20 years since he first had the idea, Million has suffered a string of regulatory and legal defeats at the hands of state and federal agencies, becoming a kind of bogeyman for conservationists in the process. Doug Ducey signed legislation this past July that invested $1.2 billion to fund projects that conserve water and bring more into the state. "I don't think that drought, especially in the era of climate change, is something we can engineer our way out of.". Environmental writerMarc Reisner said the plan was one of "brutal magnificence" and "unprecedented destructiveness." The idea of a pipeline transecting the continent is not a new idea. This would take 254 days to fill.. In northwestern Iowa, a river has repeatedly been pumped dry by a rural water utility that sells at least a quarter of the water outside the state. As zany as the ideas may sound, could anywork, and if so, what would be the costs? Most notably, the Mississippi River basin doesnt always have enough water to spare. The snowbirds commonly stay here for at least six months. The distance between Albuquerque, for example, and the Mississippi River perhaps the closest hypothetical starting point for such a pipeline is about 1,000 miles, crossing at least three. Last time I heard, we are still the United States of America.". Talk about a job-creating infrastructure project, which would rivalthe tremendous civilengineering feats our country used to be noted for. People fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta's Elk Slough near Courtland, California, on Tuesday, March 24, 2020. It's 2011 and the technology exists to build a series of water pipelines across the US, to channel flood water to holding tanks in other areas, and to supply water to drought stricken areas. CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. But interest spans deeper than that. It would cost at least $1,700 per acre-feet of water, potentially yield 600,000 acre-feet of water per year by 2060 and take 30 years to construct. While the much-needed water has improved conditions in the parched West, experts warn against claiming victory. The most obvious problem with this proposal is its mind-boggling cost. Heproposed usingnuclear explosionsto excavate the system's trenches and underground water storage reservoirs. A 45-mile, $16 billion tunnel that would mark California's largest water project in nearly 50 years took a step closer to reality this week, with Gov. We can move water, and weve proven our desire to do it. Conservation alternatives are less palatable than big infrastructure projects, but theyre also more achievable. As part of our commitment to sustainability, in 2021 Grist moved its office headquarters to the Bullitt Center in Seattles vibrant Capitol Hill neighborhood. About 60 percent of the region remains in some form of drought, continuing a decades-long spiral into water scarcity. An additional analysis emerged a decade later when Roger Viadero, an environmental scientist and engineer at Western Illinois University, and his graduate students assessed proposals suggested in last summers viral editorials. What did Disney actually lose from its Florida battle with DeSantis? Its one of dozens of letters the paperhas received proposing or vehemently opposing schemes to fix the crashing Colorado River system, which provides water to nearly 40 million people and farms in seven western states. Gavin Newsom also touted desalination in adrought resilience plan he announcedlast week, though in brackish inland areas. Mississippi River drought will impact your grocery bill. When finished, the $62 billion project will link Chinas four main rivers and requiresconstruction of three lengthy diversion routes, one using as its basethe1,100-mile longHangzhou-to-Beijing canal, which dates from the 7th century AD. Famiglietti said as long as urban areas in the West don't persist in untrammeled growth, they have enough supply for the immediate future, with the ability to rip out lawns, capture stormwater runoff in local reservoirs, do municipal audits to fix leaks and other tools. It might be in the trillions, but it probably does exist.. Opinion: California gave up on mandating COVID vaccines for schoolchildren. The hypothetical Mississippi River pipeline, which gained new life last year amid devastating drought conditions, is a case in point. Power from its hydroelectric dams would boost U.S. electricity supplies. As recently as 2021, the Arizona state legislature urged Congress to fund a technological and feasibility study of a diversion dam and pipeline scheme to harvest floodwater from the Mississippi River to replenish the Colorado River. Moreover, we need water in our dams for hydroelectric power as well as for drinking and irrigation, so we would power the Hoover, Glen Canyon and Parker dams. Millions in the Southwest will literally be left in the dark and blistering heat when theres no longer enough water behind the dam to power the giant electricity-producing turbines. YouTube star and Democratic political novice Kevin Paffrath proposed the Mississippi River pipeline last week during a debate among candidates seeking to replace Gov. Plus, the federal report found the water would be of much lower quality than other western water sources. "I started withtoilets, I was the toilet queen of L.A.," said Westford. To be talking about pipe dreams when thats not even feasible for decades, if at all Its a disservice, Scanlan said. Seeking answers,The Desert Sun consultedwater experts, conservation groups and government officials for their assessments. You could do it.". At one point, activists who opposed the project erected three large billboards warning about the high cost and potential consequences, such as the possibility that drawing down the Green River could harm the rivers fish populations. Certainly not the surrounding communities. By the way, none of this includes the incredible carbon footprints about to be stomped on the environment. Arizona, for instance, has invested millions of dollars in wastewater recycling while other communities have paid to fix leaky pipes, making their water delivery systems more efficient. The drought is so critical that this recent rainfall is a little like finding a $20 bill when youve lost your job and youre being evicted from your house, said Rhett Larson, an Arizona State University professor of water law. Citizens of Louisiana and Mississippi south of the Old River Control Structure dont need all that water. Their technical report, which hasnt been peer-reviewed, calculated that a pipe for moving this scale of water would need to be 88 feet in diameter around twice the length of a semi-trailer or a 100-foot-wide channel thats 61 feet deep. The plan would divert water from the Missouri River which normally flows into the Mississippi River and out to the Gulf of Mexico through an enormous pipeline slicing some 600 miles (970 . One benefit would be flood control for the Eastern USA . Facebook, Follow us on As apractical matter, Famiglietti, a Universityof Saskatchewan hydrology professor who tracks water basins worldwide via NASA satellite data, saidMississippi River states also experiencedry spells, and the watershed, the fourth largest in the world, also ebbs and flows. That project, which also faces heavy headwinds from environmentalists, wouldcost an estimated $12 billion. Formal large-scale water importation proposals have existed in the United States since at least the 1960s, when an American company devised the North American Water and Power Alliance to redistribute Alaskan water across the continent using reservoirs and canals. Officials imposed the state's first-ever water restrictions on cities and towns, and California farmers are drilling deeper and . The . To support our nonprofit environmental journalism, please consider disabling your ad-blocker to allow ads on Grist. These realities havent stopped the Wests would-be water barons from dreaming. after the growth in California . I can't even imagine what it would all cost. As an engineer, I can guarantee you that it is doable, Viadero said. Las Vegas' grand proposal is to take water from the mighty Mississippi in a series of smaller pipeline-like exchanges among states just west of the Mississippi to refill the overused. Diverting that water also means spreading problems, like pollutants, excessive nutrients and invasive species. Your support keeps our unbiased, nonprofit news free. So moving water that far away to supplement the ColoradoRiver, I don't think is viable. The only newsroom focused on exploring solutions at the intersection of climate and justice. The idea of a pipeline transecting the continent is not a new idea. and Renstrom says that unless Utah builds a long-promised pipeline to pump water 140 miles from Lake . Heres why thats wise, Nicholas Goldberg: How I became a tool of Chinas giant anti-American propaganda machine, Opinion: Girls reporting sexual abuse shouldnt have to fear being prosecuted. A federal report from a decade ago pegged an optimistic cost estimate for a similar pipeline at $14 billion and said the project would take 30 years to build; a Colorado rancher who championed the idea around the same time, meanwhile, estimated its costs at $23 billion. He said wastewater reuse by area agencies has already swelled from 0.20% in the 1980sto 12% of regional water supply. Their detractors counter that, in an era of permanent aridification driven by climate change, the only sustainable solution is not to bring in more water, but to consume less of it. The idea is as old and dusty as the desert Southwest: Pipe abundant Great Lakes water to parched cities out West, such as Phoenix and Las Vegas. Precedents set by other diversion attempts, like those that created the Great Lakes Compact, also cast doubt over the political viability of any large-scale Mississippi River diversion attempt, said Chloe Wardropper, a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign professor researching environmental governance. Lower Mississippi River flow means less sediment carried down to Louisiana, where its used for coastal restoration. . What if our droughts get worse? In the meantime, researchers encourage more feasible and sustainable options, including better water conservation, water recycling, and less agricultural reliance. But interest spans deeper than that. Famiglietti saidit's time for a national water policy, not to figure out where to lay down hundreds of pipesbut to look comprehensively at the intertwining of agriculture and the lion's share ofwater it uses. As a resident of Wisconsin, a state that borders the (Mississippi) river, let me say: This is never gonna happen, wrote Margaret Melville of Cedarburg, Wisconsin. In it, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Idaho Attorney General Ral Labrador contend that a new interpretation of a Clean Water Act rule is too vague, oversteps the bounds of federal authority and puts the liberties of states and private property owners at risk. Every day, we hear about water conservation, restrictions. The California Aqueduct carries about 13,000 cubic feet per second through the Central Valley; the Colorado River atLees Ferry runs about 7,000 to 14,000 cfs; the Mississippi at Vicksburg varies from 400,000 to 1.2 million cfs. "People are spoiled in the United States. Butbig water infrastructure projects aren't just of interest to the general public. For as long as this idea has been proposed. Each edition is filled with exclusive news, analysis and other behind-the-scenes information you wont find anywhere else. According to DPS, the driver of the semi-truck lost control of the truck on the icy I-40 freeway near Williams, striking a DPS patrol car parked by the side of the highway. Do they thank us for using our water? The conceptsfell into a few large categories: pipe Mississippi or Missouri River water to the eastern sideof the Rockies or to Lake Powell on the Arizona-Utah border, bring icebergs in bags, on container ships or via trucks to Southern California, pump water from the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest to California via a subterranean pipeline on the floor of the Pacific Ocean, or replenish the headwaters of the Green River, the main stem of the Colorado River, with water from tributaries. Most notably, the Mississippi River basin doesn't always have enough water to spare. Studies and modern-day engineering have proven that such projects are possible but require decades of construction and billions of dollars. he said. To the editor: I'd like to ask if the reader from Chatsworth calling for the construction of a water pipeline from the Mississippi River to Colorado River reservoirs has ever been to . We have to conserve water, butnota ridiculous wave parkthat willprobably go bankrupt? "Mexico has said it didn't although there has been a recent change ingovernment.". Its possible that the situation gets so dire that there is an amount of money out there that could overcome all of these obstacles, Larson said. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson), Lawmakers targeting hospital facility fees, Whats Working: How a Denver nonprofit is expanding the benefits of work. pipeline, line of pipe equipped with pumps and valves and other control devices for moving liquids, gases, and slurries (fine particles suspended in liquid). Million sued, and he says he expects a ruling this year. Many sawSiefkes' idea and others like it as sheer theft by a region that needs to fix its own woes. Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. Design and build by Upstatement. Snowpacks in the Sierra Nevada Mountains have swelled to more than 200 percent of their normal size, and snowfall across the rest of the Colorado River Basin is trending above average, too. Wildfire, flooding concerns after massive snowfall in Arizona, Customers will have to ask for water at Nevada restaurants if bill passes, Snow causes semi truck to crash into Arizona DPS Trooper SUV near Williams, A showdown over Colorado River water is setting the stage for a high-stakes legal battle, In Arizona and other western states, pressure to count water lost to evaporation, While the much-needed water has improved conditions in the parched West, Arizona state legislature passed a measure in 2021, RELATED: Phoenix city officials celebrate final pipe installation in the Drought Pipeline Project, the most comprehensive analysis ever undertaken within the Colorado River Basin. Whereas I understand water rights, but globalwarming has introduced new priorities. Others said the costs of an Arizona-Mexico desalination plant would also likely prove infeasible. Don't bother sending notices on conservation; they willbe ignored. The memorial is seeking Mississippi River water as a solution to ongoing shortages on the Colorado River as water levels reach historic lows in the two largest reservoirs on the river, Lake Powell and Lake Mead. Coffey said the project isn't really a pipeline, but more "a bypass for an aging 60-year-old"system. If you dont have enough of it, go find more. Most recently, the Arizona state legislature passed a measure in 2021 urging Congress to investigate pumping flood water from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River to bolster its flow. "To my mind, the overriding fatal flaw for large import schemes is the time required to become operational. Their technical report, which hasnt been peer-reviewed. Mississippi River drought will impact your grocery bill. Donate today to keep our climate news free. Arizona, which holds "junior"rights to Colorado River water, meaning it has already been forced to make cuts and might be legally required to make far larger reductions, wants to build a bi-national desalination plant at the Sea of Cortez, which separates Baja California from the Mexican mainland. But, he said, the days of mega-pipelines in the U.S. are likely over due to lack of environmental and political will. Experts we spoke with agreed the feat would be astronomical. These canals and pipelines are . The California water wars of the early twentieth century are summed up in a famous line from the 1974 film Chinatown: Either you bring the water to L.A., or you bring L.A. to the water. Nearly a hundred years have elapsed since the events the film dramatizes, but much of the West still approaches water the same way. The list of projects that run on similarly magical thinking goes on: Utah wants to build a pipeline of its own from Lake Powell to the fast-growing city of St. George, but Lake Powell has almost no water left. It dawned on Million that Colorado had unclaimed rights to water from the Green, since the river was part of the Colorado River system, and he devised a plan to build a pipeline that would pump water around the Rockies to the city of Fort Collins, where he lives. California Departmentof Water Resourcesspokeswoman Maggie Maciasin an email: In considering the feasibility of a multi-state water conveyance infrastructure, the extraordinary costs that would be involved in planning, designing, permitting, constructing, and then maintaining and operating such a vast system of infrastructure would be significant obstacles when compared to the water supply benefits and flood water reduction benefits that it would provide. and Renstrom says that unless Utah builds a long-promised pipeline to pump water 140 miles from Lake . But the idea hasnever completely died. Instagram, Follow us on She and others worked to persuade reluctant consumers, builders and policymakers to ditchwidely usedsix-gallon flush toilets in favor of perfectly effective two-gallon versions. Grab hydrogen and oxygen from the air and make artificialrain. "The engineering is feasible. Lake Mead is at its lowest level since it was filled 85 years ago. Yahoo, Reddit and ceaseless headlines about a 22-year megadrought and killer flash floods, not to mention dead bodies showing up on Lake Meads newly exposed shoreline, have galvanized reader interest this summer. Most recently, in 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation produced a report laying out a potentially grim future for the Colorado River, and had experts evaluate 14 big ideas commonly touted as potential solutions. For one, theres no longer enough unclaimed water to make most pipeline projects cost-effective. Terms of Use | Privacy Policy. Janet Wilson is senior environment reporter for The Desert Sun, and co-authors USA Today'sClimate Point newsletter. The Associated Press Climate team contributed images and page design. The other alternatives have political costs, and they have costs that are maybe more likely to be borne locally, including by farmers and other large water users, she said. This One thousand mile long pipeline could move water from the Eastern USA (Great Lakes, Ohio River, Missouri River, and Mississippi River) to the Colorado River via the Mississippi River. Any water diversion from the Mississippi to Arizona must be pumped about 6,000 feet up, over the Rockies. But in the face of continuing, ever-worsening drought and ongoing growth of the cities of the desert Southwest, is there a better idea out there? Viaderos team estimated that the sale of the water needed to fill the Colorado Rivers Lake Powell and Lake Mead the largest reservoirs in the country would cost more than $134 billion at a penny a gallon. Take that, Lake Mead. 10/4/2021. The elephant in the room, according to Fort, is agriculture, which accounts for more than 80 percent of water withdrawals from the Colorado River.
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