Roadmap for sustainable water resources in southwestern North America

Abstract

The management of water resources in arid and semiarid areas has long been a challenge, from ancient Mesopotamia to the modern southwestern United States. As our understanding of the hydrological and climatological cycles has improved, and our ability to manipulate the hydrologic cycle has increased, so too have the challenges associated with managing a limited natural resource for a growing population. Modern civilization has made remarkable progress in water management in the past few centuries. Burgeoning cities now survive in desert regions, relying on a mix of simple and complex technologies and management systems to bring adequate water and remove wastewater. These systems have permitted agricultural production and urban concentrations to expand in regions previously thought to have inadequate moisture. However, evidence is also mounting that our current management and use of water is unsustainable. Physical, economic, and ecological limits constrain the development of new supplies and additional water withdrawals, even in regions not previously thought vulnerable to water constraints. New kinds of limits are forcing water managers and policy makers to rethink previous assumptions about population, technology, regional planning, and forms of development. In addition, new threats, especially the challenges posed by climatic changes, are now apparent. Sustainably managing and using water in arid and semiarid regions such as the southwestern United States will require new thinking about water in an interdisciplinary and integrated way. The good news is that a wide range of options suggest a roadmap for sustainable water management and use in the coming decades.climate change | soft path | freshwater | sustainability | water management

Groundwater depletion and sustainability of irrigation in the US High Plains and Central Valley

“…There are no obvious options for increasing water supply in the HP or the CV. Although building canals in the CV to transfer water represented the traditional approach to water resources management, it is increasingly difficult to adopt these approaches because of cost and environmental concerns (36).…”

“…In the CV, ∼50% of crops are still produced under flood irrigation (36). The ability of improved irrigation efficiency to result in real water savings has been questioned because much of the irrigation excess is thought to return to streams or replenish aquifers (37,38), and the saved water is often used to expand irrigation or irrigate more water-intensive crops (38,39).…”

Towards Water Sensitive Cities in the Colorado River Basin: A Comparative Historical Analysis to Inform Future Urban Water Sustainability Transitions

“…It has been argued that adopting adaptive water policies with use restrictions and demand management will be important to water sustainability under uncertain climate change scenarios [81][82][83]. With population growth and industrial/agricultural expansion predicted to continue in Arizona and Nevada [84,85], water demand management will be key to sustainability transition plans in these states [67,86], but water demand management is often contentious. In Phoenix, it was discovered that increased public engagement, social equity and attention to ecological processes are needed to strengthen water governance sustainability [22].…”

“…In Phoenix, it was discovered that increased public engagement, social equity and attention to ecological processes are needed to strengthen water governance sustainability [22]. Sustainable water governance in the Colorado River Basin would benefit from shifting towards cooperative, integrated approaches, including increasing coordination between local, state and federal levels and among different regional water basin management projects [86].…”

Intelligent Metering for Urban Water: A Review

“…Data resolution is typically a function of mode, and the relationship between mode and frequency is generally one of interdependence. Together these elements provide a framework to assess the opportunities provided by IM through an enhanced understanding of how and when water is used [46]. This conceptualisation illuminates the role of the IM "information supply chain" and the various technologies and stakeholders that operate within this system (the utility, third parties, regulators, telecommunication companies, data management firms, and the customer) [47].…”