Analyzing News Reports on the Colorado River Crisis

Analyzing News Reports on the Colorado River Crisis

Colorado river is one of the significant streams of North America with its source in the Rocky Mountains. The river drains across two states in Mexico and seven U.S states flowing southwest in Colorado Plateau through the Grand Canyon reaching Lake Mead. The river turns south, entering Mexico towards the Gulf of California. Recently the water level of the Colorado River has significantly dropped due to climate change and human resources usage like irrigation along the river. The study shows that the water shortage from the river would affect Southwest and Arizona (Bergstrom, 2016). More so, the water level of Lake Mead decreases year after year due to less water supply from the Colorado River. The study gets carried out concerning the lake Mead water decrease showing various effects to all beneficiaries of the water supply. This paper analyzes news reports regarding the Colorado river water crisis and anticipated impact due to the water shortage.

Tony Davis uses scientific information retrieved from four master’s students who had graduated from the University of California under the mandate of Douglas Kenney. The four students received direction of the study from Douglas, a veteran researcher of Colorado river from the University of Colorado. Tony uses the information from the students to report about the consequences of the water shortage in the Colorado River. The main objective of the study was to analyze the effects of the water shortage in the Colorado River due to climate change and workforce alteration of the river for irrigation purposes (Davis, 2016). Therefore, the study concluded that the water shortage would rapidly affect Southwest, Arizona, and irrigation in Mexico.

Mr. Tony includes many experts in his news report, who, in return, offers a different contribution to his work. Consequently, Davis improvises the knowledge and skills from the scientists to enable the reader to adequately understand the effects of water shortage in the Colorado river in-depth. For instance, Douglas Kenney is a researcher with a lot of experience on the Colorado River, which helped the four students to deliver a well-designed study on the water shortage in the river. Furthermore, Davis implements the expertise of Bob Johnson, an interim executive director at the Phoenix-based Authority, who understands the power supply in the area (Davis, 2016).  Also, Mitch Basefsky, the CAP spokesman, is included to provide information on the updates of the current Hoover power cost.

Additionally, Thomas Buschatzke, the chief of Arizona water, and Kathleen Ferris, who is an official of Arizona water and attorney were still included. The two experts discussed concerning the study, whereby Perris agreed with the research regarding the groundwater replenishment district. Likewise, Bill Hasencamp, the Metropolitan’s director of the Colorado river programs, is involved in the report. Bill agreed with the research findings stating that the government would cut off the water supply already being rationed if the water levels drop below 1075 ft at Lake Mead.

Finally, Tony uses the expertise of Chris Neher and Christie Vanover. Chris is a researcher in the study of visitation in Lake Mead, who agreed with the study stating that indeed the water levels would significantly affect the visitation rate of Mead (Davis, 2016). Christie, on the other hand, as a spokeswoman of the National Park Service, approved with the study conclusions that the number of tourists would decrease due to the decrease of water levels in Lake Mead.

Davis shows alternatives to the study of potential effects facilitated by the shortfall evidenced in the Colorado River. His explanations entail the impacts of energy rates used by residents that use power from the Hoover Dam, the adverse consequences on the river delta, and effects towards the tourist activities in Lake Mead. Davis gives the number of tourists in the Lake as five million each year, which will be affected by the levels of water in the future. However, in 2015 tourism increased by 32% due to improved economic conditions and better promotion by the management (Howard, 2014).

The water shortage would not last for long is one of the alternatives Davis elaborates. As illustrated by Buschtzke, Arizona water resources department stored water in reservoirs during the good times, meaning the rainy seasons. Hence, the aquifers prevented future water shortage, contrary to what the research conclusions indicated. Ferris, the water official, still claimed that the water bank has been buying and recently recharging less of CAP water, preventing the predictions of the study (Canode, n.d.). Tony explains that California will not suffer from water shortage.  This is due to the federal rules that give California a more significant opportunity to access water from the river during the shortage periods.

The alternative to consider, as the study concludes that California’s Metropolitan District would be vulnerable due to the water shortage. The research is not accurate as it omitted crucial information about the industrial uses of the Colorado River (Howard, 2014). Therefore, the researchers were biased, making the study unreliable as Bod Johnson suggested that it was difficult to tell how water level reduction was attributable to drought as there are many contributors to water loss.

Government involvement in the complex issue comprising political material. Regarding policies and laws to distinguish the rights and extent of resource use in a bid to assist in regulating water shortage. Mr. Davis’s article agrees with other resources regarding the dwindling or declining water levels of Lake Mead and the necessity for collaboration to moderate the phenomenon (Katel, 2011). Also, comparing other sources with the daily star both agrees that the water shortage would result in diverse effects on people depending on the river. Nevertheless, there is an argument about the increasing cost of energy due to the decrease in water levels. Whereby other articles provide information relating to re-compensation, access to rights, and resource use charges against underground water users.

The water supply from the Colorado River gets linked to several stakeholders. First, agriculture practices in the west use approximately 80 percent of water supply, thus making the farmers the most substantial stakeholders of the Colorado river (Katel, 2011). Second, are the developers of the real-estates and the people living in the urban regions. Mr. Tony does not cover the interests of each group with the right to use water from the Colorado River.  He excludes the property aspect of environmentalists, with the main interest of conversation and also the house developers using water for building real estates. However, when discussing each stakeholder, he balances them equally and treat each one fairly

The Arizona District compensates the water used for developments in the suburbs by putting CAP water into the ground.

Furthermore, the upgrading of the plant in Hoover Dam by officials due to the decrease of water levels in the Lake Mead. Whereby three plants are online so far and two more to get launched the following year to deal with the water shortage problem in Mead (Zielinski, 2010). The farmers also suggested that their usage of water is more effective and relevant than swimming pools and beautiful green lawns as products from the farms fed both humans and animals. The use of current technology by farmers would help by appropriate solutions regarding the water shortage in the Colorado River, although they require an increased cost of operations. For instance, new techniques of farming, such as drip irrigation methods, could use less water supply compared to the usage from the past.

Another solution is the implementation of underground water projects to supply water for industrial use. The water from boreholes would be used for the real-estate developments and some domestic purposes to minimize the water usage of the Colorado River. People living in urban areas that depend on the river for water supply should implement ways to re-use water to reduce the wastage.  Still, the farmers would use the underwater wells for irrigation purposes. Other solutions consist of facilitating cooperation, conservation, and compromise with the increasing water supply-demand in the area. Furthermore, a collaborative strategy among leading competitors, such as industrial users, farmers, and residential users, would effectively utilize the available resource (Zielinski, 2010). Therefore, each stakeholder depending on the Colorado river must initiate a proactive strategy to enhance the conservation of water due to the water shortage in the river.

In conclusion, based on the research analysis on the condition of the Colorado River by Mr. Davies, involved parties should take necessary action to reduce the crisis. Hence, more studies with a similar investigation should be carried out to enhance coherence and provide more information on the same issue.

References

Bergstrom, L. (2016). Saving the Colorado River, one wave at a time. Audubon. https://www.audubon.org/news/saving-colorado-river-one-wave-time

Canode, J. (n.d.). Climate Change and the Colorado River [Video 03.08 Minutes]. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/videos/category/science/climate-change-and-the-colorado-river/

Davis, T. (2016). Study: Colorado River shortage could hit Arizona hard. Arizona Daily Star. https://tucson.com/news/science/environment/study-colorado-river-shortage-could-hit-arizona-hard/article_18e2c791-99fd-576f-b4cc-708b6e60bc68.html

Howard, B. (2014). Saving the Colorado River delta, one habitat at a time. Access Denied. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/special-features/2014/12/141216-colorado-river-delta-restoration-water-drought-environment/

Katel, P. (2011). CQR Water crisis in the west. StudyDaddy – Get homework help online from expert Tutors. https://studydaddy.com/attachment/94242/Water+crisis+in+the+West+Katel+P..pdf

Zielinski, S. (2010). The Colorado River runs dry. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-colorado-river-runs-dry-61427169/