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Just how mighty is the Colorado?

Posted by: Maven on July 11, 2009 at 8:13 am

From the Arizona Star’s Shawn McKinnon and his Waterblogged blog:

=Growth and climate change will likely weaken the Colorado River by the middle of this century, but a new study suggests that the system is resilient enough to weather some of the harshest conditions.

Researchers at the University of Colorado-Boulder say there is a 50 percent chance the river’s huge reservoirs will run dry by about 2050, a conclusion reached by earlier studies. But in the nearer term, those reservoirs will probably remain at levels that allow users to avoid serious shortages.

And if Western states act now to develop aggressive water conservation measures, they may be able to manage their way through some of the bleaker years and continue to meet the needs of the 30 million people who rely on the river.

“Water conservation and relatively small pre-planned delivery shortages tied to declining reservoir levels can play a big part in reducing our risk,” said Ken Nowak, a CU graduate student and a co-author of the new study. “But the more severe the drying with climate change, the more likely we will see shortages and perhaps empty reservoirs despite our best efforts.”

Read more from Shawn McKinnon’s Waterblogged blog by clicking here.

July 11, 2009 · Filed Under Colorado River & the Southwest

Comments

One Response to “Just how mighty is the Colorado?”

  1. WaterSource on July 11th, 2009 4:14 pm

    “Empty reservoirs despite your best efforts” …

    Only if you continue to ignore the NON-TRIBUTARY Source of a million acre feet a year that could be accumulated in the “empty Reservoirs” to keep Lake Mead and others … reasonably FULL !

    So much for another “new study” …

    WaterSource/WaterBank waterrdw@yahoo.com

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