About 33% of vegetables and 66% of fruits and nuts are produced in California for consumption for the nation. To the editor: I'd like to ask if the reader from Chatsworth calling for the construction of a water pipeline from the Mississippi River to Colorado River reservoirs has ever been to . The idea of a pipeline transecting the continent is not a new idea. My water, your water. If this gets any traction at all, people in the flyover states of the Missouri River basin probably will scream, one water official told the New York Times when the project first received attention. Not mentioned was the great grand-daddy of all schemes for re-allocating water, known as the North American Water and Power Authority Plan. Lower Mississippi River flow means less sediment carried down to Louisiana, where its used for coastal restoration. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. This story is a product of theMississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, an editorially independent reporting network based at the University ofMissouri School of Journalismin partnership withReport For Americaand theSociety of Environmental Journalists, funded by the Walton Family Foundation. As apractical matter, Famiglietti, a Universityof Saskatchewan hydrology professor who tracks water basins worldwide via NASA satellite data, saidMississippi River states also experiencedry spells, and the watershed, the fourth largest in the world, also ebbs and flows. The price tag for construction would add to this hefty bill, along with the costs of powering the equipment needed to pump the water over the Western Continental Divide. She can be reached at jwilson@gannett.com or @janetwilson66 on Twitter. The memorial is seeking Mississippi River water as a solution to ongoing shortages on the Colorado River as water levels reach historic lows in the two largest reservoirs on the river, Lake Powell and Lake Mead. A multi-state pipeline could easily require decades before it delivers a drop of water," said Michael Cohen, senior researcher with the Pacific Institute. In fact, she and others noted, many such ideas have been studied since the 1940s. Other forms of augmentation, like desalination, are also gaining popularity on the national scene as possible options. Title: USGS Surface-Water Daily Data for the Nation URL: https://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/dv? The Great Lakes Compact, signed by President George W. Bush in 2008,bans large waterexportsoutside of the areawithout the approval of all eight states bordering them andinput fromOntario and Quebec. We have to conserve water, butnota ridiculous wave parkthat willprobably go bankrupt? But pipelines and other big ideaswill always attract interest, hydrology experts said, because they falsely promise an innovative, easy way out. But Westford and her colleague Brad Coffey, water resources manager,said desalination is needed in the Golden State. "I think that societally, we want to be more flexible. A retired engineer suggested a rather outlandish-in-scope but logical-in-approach solution to the seemingly growing floods in the central U.S. and the water woes of the West Coast - build a nearly 1,500-mile aqueduct to connect the two. So moving water that far away to supplement the ColoradoRiver, I don't think is viable. And contrary to Siefkes' claims, experts said, the silty river flows provide sediment critical to shore up the rapidly disappearing Louisiana coast andbarrier islands chewed to bits by hurricanes and sea rise. Gavin Newsom reaffirming his support for the ambitious proposal. From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka): Hausler's idea is to bring water from the Mississippi just below its confluence with the Ohio River across Missouri and Kansas into Colorado. Scientists estimate a football field's worth of Louisiana coast is lost every 60 to 90 minutes. Its easy to understand why politicians want to throw their weight behind similar present-day projects, Fort told Grist, but projects of this size just arent practical anymore. Would itbe expensive? But the loss of so much water from the. Drought looms over midterm elections in the arid West, From lab to market, bio-based products are gaining momentum, The hazards of gas stoves were flagged by the industry and hidden 50 years ago, How Alaskas coastal communities are racing against erosion, Construction begins on controversial lithium mine in Nevada. Martinez, an engineer who oversaw the construction of pipelines in the Sierra Nevada for Southern California Edison, agrees a 1,500-mile pipeline from the Mississippicould physically be built. "We do not expect to see (carbon capture and storage) happen at a large scale unless we are able to address that pipeline issue," said Rajinder Sahota, deputy executive officer for climate change . Viaderos team estimated that the sale of the water needed to fill the Colorado Rivers Lake Powell and Lake Mead the largest reservoirs in the country would cost more than $134 billion at a penny a gallon. Donate today to keep our climate news free. General Manager Henry Martinez also warned that cutting water to Imperial Valley farmers and nearby Yuma County, Arizona, could lead to a food crisis as well as a water crisis. Take for instance the so-called Water Horse pipeline, a pet project of a Colorado investor and entrepreneur named Aaron Million. Pipeline sizes vary from the 2-inch- (5-centimetre-) diameter lines used in oil-well gathering systems to lines 30 feet (9 metres) across in high-volume water and sewage networks. Those will require sacrifices, no doubt but not as many as building a giant pipeline would require, experts said. Kaufman is the general manager of Leavenworth Water, which serves 50,000 people in a town that welcomed Lewis and Clark in 1804 during the duo's westward exploration. Why are they so hard to catch? This latest version would curve up through the Wyoming flatlands and back down to Fort Collins, a distance of around 340 miles. For one, theres no longer enough unclaimed water to make most pipeline projects cost-effective. People need to focus on their realistic solutions.. An earlier version of this story misidentified for which agency Jennifer Pitt was a technical adviser. Letter writers have asked why a water pipeline is not constructed from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River. Here are some facts to put perspective to several of the. Nevertheless, Million hasnt given up, and hes currently working to secure permitting for the fourth iteration of the project. I think the feasibility study is likely to tell us what we already know, he said, which is that there are a lot less expensive, less complicated options that we can be investing in right now, like reducing water use. Ultimately the rising environmental movement squelched it the project woulddestroyvast wildlife habitats in Canada and the American West,submergewild rivers in Idaho and Montana,and requirethe relocation of hundreds of thousands of people. Most notably, the Mississippi River basin doesnt always have enough water to spare. Politics are an even bigger obstacle for making multi-state pipelines a reality. Most recently, the Arizona state legislature passed a measure in 2021 urging Congress to investigate pumping flood water from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River to bolster its flow. Los Angeles-area water districts have implemented much of what Famiglietti mentioned. All that snow in Arizona is nice now but officials worry that it could create disastrous flooding and wildfire conditions. Stop letting excess water flow out to sea. What if our droughts get worse? YouTube star and Democratic political novice Kevin Paffrath proposed the Mississippi River pipeline last week during a debate among candidates seeking to replace Gov. A 45-mile, $16 billion tunnel that would mark California's largest water project in nearly 50 years took a step closer to reality this week, with Gov. The diverted flow would require massive water tunnels, since a flow of 250,000. Siphon off a big portion, and youd be swapping oneecological catastrophe for another, said Audubons Johnson. Known as one of the greenest commercial buildings in the world, since it opened its doors on Earth Day in 2013 the Bullitt Center has been setting a new standard for sustainable design. The other alternatives have political costs, and they have costs that are maybe more likely to be borne locally, including by farmers and other large water users, she said. USGS 05587500 Mississippi River at Alton, IL. Just this past summer, the idea caused a firestorm of letters to the editor at a California newspaper. Seeking answers,The Desert Sun consultedwater experts, conservation groups and government officials for their assessments. The California Aqueduct carries about 13,000 cubic feet per second through the Central Valley; the Colorado River atLees Ferry runs about 7,000 to 14,000 cfs; the Mississippi at Vicksburg varies from 400,000 to 1.2 million cfs. The only newsroom focused on exploring solutions at the intersection of climate and justice. Million himself, though, is confident that his pipeline will get built, and that it will ensure Fort Collins future. . Pipe water from the plentiful Great Lakes to deserted towns in the West like Phoenix and Las Vegas. Another businessman in New Mexico has pushed plans to pump river water 150 miles to the city of Santa Fe, but that water would have to be pumped uphill. Any water diversion from the Mississippi to Arizona must be pumped about 6,000 feet up, over the Rockies. of Engineers has turned back official requests for more water from the Missouri River to alleviate shortages on the Mississippi. In northwestern Iowa, a river has repeatedly been pumped dry by a rural water utility that sells at least a quarter of the water outside the state. You should worry, Hidden, illegal casinos are booming in L.A., with organized crime reaping big profits, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles, Elliott: Kings use their heads over hearts in trading Jonathan Quick, This fabled orchid breeder loves to chat just not about Trader Joes orchids. The Arizona state legislature allocated seed money toward a study of a thousand-mile pipeline that would do exactly this last year, and the states top water official says hes spoken to officials in Kansas about participating in the project. "I started withtoilets, I was the toilet queen of L.A.," said Westford. Officials imposed the state's first-ever water restrictions on cities and towns, and California farmers are drilling deeper and . YouTube, Follow us on WATER WILL SOON be flowing from Lake Superior to the parched American Southwest. Anyone who thinks we can drain the aquifer and survive is grossly misinformed. Subscribe today to see what all the buzz is about. But if areas like the Coachella Valley continue to approve surf waveparks and "beachfront" developments in the desert, "we're screwed," he said bluntly. A drive up Interstate 5 shows how muchland has been fallowed due tolack of water. In their technical report, which hasnt been peer-reviewed, they calculated that a pipe for moving this scale of water would need to be 88 feet in diameter around twice the length of a semi trailer or a 100-foot-wide channel thats 61 feet deep. Twitter, Follow us on By Brittney J. Miller, The Cedar Rapids Gazette. and Renstrom says that unless Utah builds a long-promised pipeline to pump water 140 miles from Lake . Either way, most of these projects stand little chance of becoming reality theyre ideas from a bygone era, one that has more in common with the world of Chinatown than the parched west of the present. Much of the sediment it was carrying was dropped in the slow moving water of the Delta. Under the analyzed scenario, water would be conveyed to Colorados Front Range and areas of New Mexico to help fulfill water needs. Today, any water pipeline could cost from $10 billion to $20 billion with another $30 billion in improvements just to get the water to thirsty people and farms. Facebook, Follow us on PROVISIONAL DATA SUBJECT TO REVISION. He said hes open to one but doesnt think its necessary. Theyre all such hypocrites. Most recently, the Arizona state legislature passed a measure in 2021 urging Congress to investigate pumping flood water from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River to bolster its flow. Were not looking for the last dollar out of this project, he told me. It might be in the trillions, but it probably does exist.. Power from its hydroelectric dams would boost U.S. electricity supplies. Pat Mulroy, head of the Southern Nevada Water Authority, pitched a bold idea at a US Chamber of Commerce event last week: divert excess Mississippi River water to the west to irrigate crops to reduce pressure on the stressed Colorado River. Ive cowboyed enough in my life to know that you just got to stick to the trail, he said. The ongoing drought in California has hit its fourth year. Last time I heard, we are still the United States of America.". Last updated on: February 10, 2023, 10:54h. A Mississippi pipeline to Lake Powell would need to cut across four states, he and Johnson said, including hundreds of miles of wetlands in Louisiana and west Texas. If we had a big pipeline from Lake Sakakawea, we wouldn't just dump it into Lake Powell. Each year . The Old River Control Structure, as it was dubbed, is also the linchpin of massive but delicate locks and pulsed flows that feed the largest bottomland hardwood forests and wetlands in the United States, outstripping thebetter-known Okefenokee Swamp that straddles Georgia and Florida. So what are the solutions to the arid West's dilemma, as climate change heats up and California's State Water Project, along with Lake Mead and Lake Powell, shrivels due to reduced snowmelt and rainfall? States have [historically] been very successful in getting the federal government to pay for wasteful, unsustainable, large water projects, said Denise Fort, a professor emerita at the University of New Mexico who has studied water infrastructure. Whereas I understand water rights, but globalwarming has introduced new priorities. It would cost at least $1,700 per acre-feet of water, potentially yield 600,000 acre-feet of water per year by 2060 and take 30 years to construct. The water would be drained via a 36 inch pipe already installed four miles west of Sugarloaf Mountain outside Marquette. According to DPS, the driver of the semi-truck lost control of the truck on the icy I-40 freeway near Williams, striking a DPS patrol car parked by the side of the highway. USGS 05587500 Mississippi River at Alton, IL. But there are tons of things that can be done but arent ever done.. "People are spoiled in the United States. "Nebraska wants to build a canal to pull water from the SouthPlatte River in Colorado, and downstream, Colorado wants to take water from the Missouri River and pull it back across Nebraska. No one wants to leave the western states without water, said Melissa Scanlan, a freshwater sciences professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Even at its cheapest, the project would cost about twice as much per acre-foot of water delivered than other solutions like water conservation and reuse. All rights reserved. To be talking about pipe dreams, when thats not even feasible for decades, if at all Its a disservice, Scanlan said. This One thousand mile long pipeline could move water from the Eastern USA (Great Lakes, Ohio River, Missouri River, and Mississippi River) to the Colorado River via the Mississippi River. Pitt, who was a technical adviser on Reclamation's2012 report,decried ceaselesspipeline proposals. The 800-mile system of pipelines, ditches and reservoirs would cost an estimated $23 billion and could provide 1 million acre-feet of water a year to Colorado. The idea of drinking even heavily treated liquid wastemay seem unpalatable, but Westfordthinks people will adapt. "Mexico has said it didn't although there has been a recent change ingovernment.". I have dystopian nightmares aboutpipelines marching across the landscape, saidglobal water scarcity expert Jay Famiglietti. Parsons said theplanwould replenishthe upper Missouri and Mississippi Rivers during dry spells, increase hydropower along the Columbia Riverand stabilize the Great Lakes. And several approved diversions draw water from the Great Lakes. And there are several approved diversions that draw water from the Great Lakes. Water use has gone down 40% per capita in recent years, said Coffey. CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. As recently as 2021, the Arizona state legislature urged Congress to fund a technological and feasibility study of a diversion dam and pipeline scheme to harvest floodwater from the Mississippi River to replenish the Colorado River. Similar ideas have been suggested about Great Lakes water. But the idea hasnever completely died. All it does is cause flooding and massive tax expenditures to repair and strengthen dikes, wrote Siefkes.New Orleans has a problem with that much water anyway, so lets divert 250,000 gallons/secondto Lake Powell, which currently has a shortage of 5.5 trillion gallons. Talk about a job-creating infrastructure project, which would rivalthe tremendous civilengineering feats our country used to be noted for. She points to her earlyworkfor comparison. Still, its physically possible. Posted on: February 7, 2023, 02:30h. Studies and modern-day engineering have proven that such projects are possible but would require decades of construction and billions of dollars.