Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
are irrigated from the Eastern Snake Plain aquifer, with diversion of
about 2 million acre-feet of groundwater every year. Added energy
uses, which demand surface water and groundwater, further strain
Idaho's ability to satisfy existing needs, as do changes in snowpack
levels and spring runoffs associated with climate change. In fact,
says Tuthill, the biggest water issue in the United States today is
climate change, and it's exacerbated by inadequate infrastructure.
It's of the most concern in the Western states because they rely on
melted snowpack to fi ll their reservoirs. If the snowpack is lower
and therefore melts more quickly and easily, the infrastructure
isn't in place to capture all the water. So even if the total supply of
water remains the same, what's captured in the reservoirs won't be
enough to meet water needs during the summer, Tuthill adds.
Despite all the parched fi elds, farmers versus fi sheries battles,
and drought concerns coming out of California, lack of water isn't
the issue for that state, says Kightlinger. Developing major new
infrastructure to harness, store, and direct that water is the prob-
lem. Southern California gets its water supply from three basic
sources, he says: local supplies, the Colorado River, and Northern
California. California is not a truly water-poor state. However, it
does require the best use of the resource and good infrastructure
to move it where it's needed.
“We have put off infrastructure investment for some time in
this country, and that is having an impact on most utilities—roads,
transportation, rail, airlines. It's impacting water supply as well,”
says Kightlinger. “We have a state [water] crisis because California
has not invested in the conveyances it needs to move the water from
water-rich Northern California to parched Southern California.”
Cashing In on Agriculture versus Urban Use
The controversy swirling around pricing water commensurate with
its value includes politics and personal agendas, too. One of the most
contentious battles pits agriculture and irrigation interests against
urban municipal and industrial users. Remember that in Chapter 1
we said that agricultural irrigation is the nation's second-biggest
water user, accounting for some 128 billion gallons of freshwater
every year, according to numbers from the U.S. Geological Survey.
