Wasted water from the Colorado River is the subject of this article from the Arizona Republic. From the article, "No matter how many pipelines, pumps and dams Western states build along the Colorado River, billions of gallons of water will never make it to the farms and growing cities that need it. That water instead seeps into the ground through unlined canals and ditches, escapes downstream when users can't take it as planned or is sucked up by trees, bushes and other vegetation along the river's 1,450-mile course. To water managers in the seven river states, that is wasted water. With demand growing and the supply limited, or even shrinking in drought years, the states want to reduce the waste as much as they can. They are studying a range of ideas, from pulling weeds to lining canals, as part of a broader plan to deal with future shortages. Few of the ideas are new or groundbreaking. Lining canals with concrete is one of the easiest ways to conserve water on farms and has been slowly taking place for years. Some smaller farms have converted to more water-efficient operations as well. And losses to invasive plant species have long held the attention of researchers. Until now, most of the remedies to these problems were considered too expensive when weighed against the benefits. But with water supplies continuing to shrink, that equation is changing."
Category: Colorado Water
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