EDITORIAL: Rising water prices when reservoirs dry up? part One

Last week, a reader of the Daily Post posted a link to an article on TheHill.com, a website primarily focused on the hustle and bustle of Washington DC. However, this particular article concerned events west of the continental divide. Written by reporter Zack Budryk and headed, “The Fall of Lake Mead Heralds a Frightening Water Future in West,” it contained a quote from Kathryn Sorensen, an advisory board member at the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University:

That means the only viable long-term solution is that together we need to use significantly less water from the Colorado River. Cities cannot solve this problem on their own because about 75-80 percent of the Colorado River’s water is used for agriculture. Everyone has to contribute, ”she told The Hill. “That is easier said than done because everyone naturally thinks that their own water consumption is justified and that others are not.

Mr. Budryk’s story is reflected in numerous articles in dozens of newspapers and news websites over the past few years. To read similar stories, all you have to do is google “Lake Mead”. You might even find a few such articles here in the Daily Post, written by Yours Truly.

The basic story elements are:

Persistent drought conditions in the American Southwest and the belief that global warming will make problems worse.

The water level in Lake Mead – the largest man-made water reservoir in the country – has been falling steadily since about 2001, reaching an all-time low of 1,071.56 feet above sea level earlier this month, which is only 37 percent full.

Concerns about rising electricity costs across the Southwest if (and when) the massive generators at Hoover Dam (and Glen Canyon Dam, on Lake Powell) dry up.

Pending conflicts between the seven US states that use the (overcrowded) Colorado River.

Diminishing groundwater in the southwest.

Agricultural users faced urban and suburban water districts.

As the regional situation becomes more difficult every day – in certain locations – the Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District (PAWSD) reported that all five of our major urban reservoirs – Lake Hatcher, Stevens Reservoir, Lake Pagosa, Village Lake and Lake Forest – are full to the brim. Nonetheless, PAWSD has announced that its activities are now in the “voluntary drought”.

The Pagosa Area Water and Sanitation District (PAWSD) is currently in a VOLUNTARY drought phase according to its Drought Management Plan 2020. The main reason for this period of drought is the US Drought Monitor (USDM), which indicates that our area is in a severe to extreme drought … There are no mandatory water use restrictions as part of the voluntary drought phase, but PAWSD promotes responsible water use. This spring we saw higher than normal temperatures. These high temperatures, combined with a decrease in rainfall in late spring, resulted in the snowpack melting faster than normal, reducing our available water and which could lead to water usage restrictions.

In other words, things are looking good here in Pagosa Springs right now. But there could be trouble.

At the regular meeting of the San Juan Water Conservancy District this week, the board concluded the meeting with a discussion of the Navajo Reservoir. Was it true that water managers would order or solicit or beg for the releases of three reservoirs in the Colorado River Basin – Navajo Reservoir, Blue Mesa Reservoir, and Flaming Gorge Reservoir – to maintain electricity production in Lake Powell and Lake Mead? ?

Disclosure: Although I am currently a volunteer on the board of directors of the San Juan Water Conservancy District, the following editorial expresses my personal opinions only and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of other members of the SJWCD board or the board as a whole.

The Navajo Reservoir (also known as Navajo Lake) is one of the most popular recreational areas in our community and an important man-made water reservoir for neighboring Indian tribes. It began to fill in 1962 and is the fifth largest reservoir in the Colorado River Basin system. When it is full, it holds about 1.7 million acres of water. It’s about 67% full right now. The Blue Mesa Reservoir was approximately 42% full at the end of May. Flaming Gorge in Wyoming is roughly 84% full.

The Navajo Reservoir Marina in New Mexico, near the western end of the 25 mile long lake.

Nobody at the SJWCD board meeting had solid information on this rumor, but a 2019 drought plan calls for water releases from Navajo, Flaming Gorge and Blue Mesa into Lake Powell if Powell’s surface elevation falls below a critical threshold of 3,525 feet – the level when the hydropower generators stop working.

But Lake Powell has to shed water on a regular basis, both to generate the electricity we depend on and to carry water downstream to Lake Mead. The water that flows from the Navajo Reservoir is ultimately destined for Lake Mead and from there to (mostly) Southern California farmers.

If it’s true that Lake Mead is 37% full – and I have no reason to doubt the reports other than that they come from government sources – then my calculator shows the reservoir is about 10 million acre-feet short of capacity.

If water managers completely drained the Navajo Reservoir, which currently contains 1.1 million acres of stored freshwater, downstream into Lake Powell and thence into Lake Mead, it would hardly affect Lake Mead’s problems.

But it would definitely cause some concern for Archuleta County’s recreational boating enthusiasts.

Obviously, as Kathryn Sorensen suggests, we need to “use significantly less water from the Colorado River together”.

And as she says: “Easier said than done …”

Read part two tomorrow …

Bill Hudson

Bill Hudson

Bill Hudson began sharing his opinion on the Pagosa Daily Post in 2004 and cannot break that habit. He claims that Pagosa Springs opinions are like pickup trucks: everyone has one.

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