Schulte 1

Carla Schulte
Professor Tyler
English 1201
29 October 2016
The Water Crisis in the Western United States
The Morrow Point boat tour is a fun and relaxing way to experience the Black Canyon of
the Gunnison in the colorful state of Colorado. On a beautiful, sunny summer day many tourists
walk down 232 steps to board a pontoon boat to learn about the early narrow-gauge railroad,
geology, wildlife, and the Colorado River. Little do they know that the National Park Ranger
will make an impressionable presentation on the dwindling water supply in the West. On a
particular trip, the Ranger gathered all the children to the front of the boat and as they faced the
adults he stated, the Colorado River is running dry and this generation will not have enough
water to survive unless you save it. The Colorado River provides the western United States
with a clean supply of water for health, agriculture, recreation, and industry. Climate changes
and drought have disrupted the water levels in the Colorado River, but the water shortage is
exasperated by human overconsumption, wasteful water management, and irresponsible
legislation.
In 1922, the Congress of the United States approved the Colorado River Compact to
provide equitable division of the use of the Colorado River System among Arizona, Nevada,
New Mexico, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado. Mexico was allocated a 10% portion of the rivers
water to be obtained primarily from surplus flow with States sharing a percentage of their water
in times of insufficient water flow (Waterman). The river no longer reaches the desert of
northwestern Mexico. According to David Bank, until 1998 the Colorado regularly flowed

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south along the Arizona-California border into a Mexican delta, irrigating farmlands and
enriching a wealth of wildlife and flora before emptying into the Gulf of California (1). Mexico
and the United States are working together to restore 10,000 acres in the delta and revive 30,000
acres of riverside habitat (Gaynor).
Water management had an erroneous start in the western United States because when the
water was divided up the estimate of the Colorado flow was based on an 18 million acre/feet
flow rate (Lustgarten). Years later it was realized that this estimate was much higher than the
actual 12 million acre/feet flow (Lustgarten). This difference translates into 1.4 trillion gallons a
year being distributed among the states than the river provides (Lustgarten). Even in years
without drought in the west it is impossible to meet the quota of water allocated to each state.
Yet, the amount of water promised to meet different demands keeps growing. For example, in
1944 a treaty was signed promising Mexico an additional 1.5 million acre-feet to Mexico in an
area where the river ends (Bunch).
The water from the Colorado River supports municipal and industrial needs with an evergrowing imbalance between supply and demand. The seven states sharing the water rights have
a combined population of over 30 million people with some of these states having the fastest
growing populations in the United States (Lee and Plant, 56). Much of this growth is due to
immigration evidenced by fact that in 2010 as much as 60% of Californias population growth
was attributed to immigration (Bunch). There have been presidential commissions calling for
population stabilization by limiting immigration. Joey Bunch, an environmentalist, in a
television documentary claims, the grim reality is that millions of Americans could soon be
without enough water if solutions are not put in place (np).

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Pat Mulroy, head of the Las Vegas Valley Water District, has pioneered water programs
that force water to be used more efficiently while embracing population growth. Ms. Mulroy
does not believe geography and natural resources limit the urban growth in Las Vegas. Under
her direction, two tunnels built from Lake Mead and a pipeline to carry groundwater from farms
in the east have removing 60% more water from the Colorado River (Lustgarten).
Environmentalists argue this is more of a short-term solution that will not sustain population
growth. Lake Mead is the most evident sign that drought has gripped the Western United States.
It held its full capacity in 2000, dropped to 38% at the end of 2015, and has continued to have a
decline in water levels (Balling and Goodrich). Eventually, the water levels in Lake Mead will
be depleted if consumer consumption is not regulated through higher prices or limited use.
Agriculture places the greatest demand on the Colorado River using 56% to 80% of water
flow to irrigate crops, nourish livestock, and preserve stock ponds (Balling and Goodrich). It is
estimated that this water is used to grow 15% of the nations crops (McClurg, 6). In Colorado
and many of the other seven states, water right laws go back 150 years giving farmers the first
access for water use of the river. Companies, often from the energy sector, purchase farms to
acquire the high priority water rights since it is legal for them to repurpose water rights for
industry use. This practice has dried up some agricultural cities like Crowley, Colorado. Critics
argue that this has not only ruined the quality of community life but the economic potential of the
region. To address this problem, the Lower Arkansas Valley Water Conservancy District formed
a Super Ditch which is a rotational agreement with cities to negotiate water use from the
Arkansas River Ditch System (Lee and Plant, 57).

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Environmentalists insist water laws also discourage farmers and ranchers to conserve
water during a drought because their water allotment is based upon usage. Many farmers will
flood irrigate their pastures using all of their water ration. Farmers claim that the excess water
not used by plants flows underground downhill to benefit communities and ultimately provide a
steady flow of water back into the river itself. Farmers do not want to change this method of
irrigation because it supports the ecology in the west created through overwatering. Farmers
claim that the rocky soil does not absorb all the water and the runoff fills the underlying aquifer
then ultimately flow back into the Colorado River. Not accounting for the water lost through
evaporation and ground absorption that does not return to the river. It is possible for farmers to
build reservoirs to store water during period of excessive runoff to be used during periods of
drought.
Farmers have voiced concern that their efforts to conserve water would only encourage
cities to grow beyond their capacity forcing farmers to lease or sell their water rights. Many
cities in eastern Colorado take 154 billion gallons of water across the Continental Divide from
western Colorado every year (Bunch). Plans to build more tunnels to redirect water from
agricultural regions to foster urban growth have Farmers alarmed that they will be forced to give
up their water rights. Las Vegas, Denver, and Los Angeles are pushing to develop programs to
take water used by the agricultural industry. Bill Trampe, a Farmer in Colorado, states, The
cities continue to grow and grow and growand they expect me or us as an industry- to give
up Water-Why should I suffer for their sprawl? (Bunch).
The Colorado River has many stakeholders that are pushing this river to its greatest limits.
Americans across the United States should be concerned about the water crisis in the west. The
agricultural industry needs sufficient water to produce enough crops to feed Americans across the

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country. For instance, each American uses 300 gallons of Californias water each week just by
eating food produced from that state (Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown). The cost of food
supplied by the west will surely rise has the cost of water or energy generating by hydroelectric
plants increases (Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown). The United States economy is very
much influenced by the western states contribution to the gross domestic product. It is in
everyones best interest to save the Colorado River from low water levels and potentially running
dry.
Water taken away from the agricultural industry to support population growth will
negatively impact western communities as business or jobs are lost when farmland is taken.
Water can be obtained groundwater reserves in times of drought with the hope that in years of
water surplus these reserves with be recharged. However, estimates of ground water reserves are
outdated so there is no certainty of how much is available. California uses half of its current
groundwater reserves but this is not sustainable (Ackerman and Stanton, 17). It is projected that
California would need three times of the available groundwater to get through the next century.
Depletion of groundwater poses a risk to long-term water security.
There are conflicting opinions about whether the water crisis in the west is man-made or
due to climate change. Many environmentalists claim that global warming is to blame for high
temperature, low precipitation, and evaporation losses affecting low water levels in the Colorado
river. The trend with climate change in the West is reduced snowpack, warmer winters, and
stream flows that come earlier in the calendar year (Lustgarten). The storage capacity for runoff
that happens earlier in the year has not yet been developed. Also, the rising temperatures
increase the amount of water needed by farmers to produce crops and sustain livestock. A recent

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report found that climate change is
not the cause of the water crisis in the West (Lustgarten). The NOAA attributes the drought in
the West to normal variances in nature and not global warming.
The NOAA and Environmentalists believe there is mismanagement of the water supply in
the West and this makes the West more vulnerable to environmental changes. Population
projections predict that by 2060 more than 62 million people will rely on the Colorado River
(Lee and Plant, 58). Agricultural water needs will continue to grow as well as an increased food
supply will be needed to support increased food demands. Water experts expect that without
water conservation 7 out of every 10 years until 2030 western states will experience deficits and
water use restrictions and there will be an inadequate water supply by 2050 (Ackerman and
Stanton,18).

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Bureau of Reclamation Agriculture, Municipal and Energy Demand Projections

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Works Cited
Ackerman, Frank and Elizabeth Stanton. The Last Drop: Climate Change and the Southwest
Water Crisis. Publication. Somerville: Stockholm Environment Institute, 2011. Print.
Balling, Robert C., and Gregory B. Goodrich. "Analysis of Drought Determinants for The
Colorado River Basin." Climatic Change 1-2 (2007): 179. Academic OneFile. Web. 15
Oct. 2016.
Bank, David. "As the Colorado River Runs Dry, Impact Investors Seek Water Solutions." 30
September 2015. Huffington Post. Web. 15 October 2016.
Bunch, Joey. "Population Growth in Colorado, A First Look - Killing Colorado: Killing
Colorado." Killing Colorado - Documenting the End of One of America's Last Wild
Places: Killing Colorado. N.p., 28 Dec. 2010. Web. 14 Oct. 2016.
Gaynor, Tim. US - Mexico Water Pact Brings Life Back to Colorado River's Parched Delta. 27
August 2015. WEB. 28 October 2016.
Lee, Nathan and Alice Plant. Agricultural Water Use in the Colorado River Basin: Conservation
and Efficiency Tools for a Water Friendly Future. Agricultural. Colorado Springs:
Colorado College, 2016. Document.
Lustgarten, Abrahm. "Californias Drought Is Part of a Much Bigger Water Crisis. Heres What
You Need to Know." 25 June 2015. Propublica. Web. 15 October 2016.
McClurg, Sue. "Historic Drought and The Colorado River: Today and Tomorrow." Western
Water (2015): 4-13. Environment Complete. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.
Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown. More Water In California Reservoirs, But Drought
Persists. 10 October 2016. Web. 14 October 2016.

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Waterman, Jonathan. "Where the Colorado Runs Dry." 15 February 2015. The New York Times.
Web. 15 October 2016.