One of the largest rivers in the world struggles to reach the ocean. Spread across a huge slice of a continent, its basin supports millions. Yet the weight of its work to irrigate and power booming farms and cities in an increasingly arid zone is straining the river to a breaking point. For many working in the western water space, this describes the Colorado. A river whose over-work and over-allocation, despite its fundamental role in sustaining life for half a continent, seems in many ways singular.
On the Water Front
Learning from shared scarcity: the Colorado River, the Yellow River and the world
Also posted in Agriculture, Colorado River, Drought, Groundwater Tagged china yellow river, colorado river, drought, groundwater, water security, water use, yellow river Leave a comment
For some Texans, a day without water is not imaginary – it is an unfortunate reality
In Presidio County, running water is a luxury that some residents do not enjoy. Families in Las Pampas, a Colonia near the Mexican border, must truck water from the City of Presidio to their homes north of town, spending money and time to secure what many Texans take for granted – running water and the economic opportunity this provides. Decades ago, when Las Pampas was first developed, a few groundwater wells supplied water to homes and even a restaurant, but the wells were poorly constructed and too shallow to access reliable underground water in this desert region. Eventually, they stopped flowing, and Las Pampas literally dried up.
Also posted in Agriculture, Drought, Groundwater Tagged texas, texas aquifer, texas groundwater, texasdrought, texlege Leave a comment
Hispanic Heritage Month: meet local leaders helping communities address key water issues
As Hispanic Heritage Month ends, we celebrate our Hispanic Water Leadership Institute alumni making a difference in their communities.
Nearly 20% of the United States identifies as Hispanic. The largest minority group in the country is also the largest group disproportionately impacted by contaminated groundwater. This is due to a lack of resources and widespread inequities in funding, policies, investment in water infrastructure and education.
EDF’s Water Leadership Institute annually hosts a cohort of leaders working tirelessly to address these inequities. These remarkable leaders are mobilizing their communities and advocating for change by securing funding, advocating for policy shifts, and engaging their community members on local water challenges.
‘We are driving a car without a fuel gauge’ — data and localization needs dominate the emerging global consensus on groundwater
Groundwater professionals have long united around the desire to “make the invisible visible.” It’s a slogan that finds its way into most conversations, publications, and speeches on the global groundwater crisis. Last year’s United Nations World Water Development Report focused entirely on groundwater. It’s chosen title? Groundwater, making the invisible visible.
One could be forgiven then for expecting groundwater to be highly visible at last week’s World Water Week—the sprawling annual gathering around which much of the global discussion on water pivots. Yet, mirroring ground-reality across much of the world, groundwater remained largely out of the spotlight. Only a handful of sessions, out of hundreds on offer, focused on the topic and none received center-stage treatment.
That is not to say there were no fruitful discussions on groundwater in Stockholm. In fact, the sessions that did focus on the topic produced some substantial conversations that provide a glimpse at the emerging global consensus on both the need for improved management at multiple scales and specific steps required to facilitate such improvements. Read More
Bi-partisan efforts yield important wins for water in Oregon
Oregon’s 2023 legislative session concluded with a wide-ranging drought package passing through the House and the Senate, enabling key investments necessary to building a water-secure future for Oregon’s communities and ecosystems. Read More
Also posted in Agriculture, Drought, Groundwater Tagged drought, groundwater, oregon, oregon legislature, oregon water, water conservation, water infrastructure, water security, water use Leave a comment
The Phoenix area can no longer grow on groundwater. What does this mean for Arizona?
Last week Governor Hobbs and the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) released a new analysis of groundwater in the Phoenix metro area. News broke around the country with headlines questioning the viability of future development in the region. But, what does this new analysis actually mean for Arizona? Let’s dive in.
Also posted in Agriculture, Arizona, Colorado River, Drought, Groundwater Tagged Arizona, arizona drought, arizona groundwater, colorado river, drought, water conservation, water use Leave a comment