In 1982,efforts were made to revive the plan by a Parsons company engineer, and the Lyndon Larouche movement supported itas recently as 2010. 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. No. The idea of diverting water from the Mississippi to the Colorado River basin is an excellent one, albeit also fantastically expensive. Most notably, the Mississippi River basin doesnt always have enough water to spare. An in-depth feasibility study specifically on pumping Mississippi River water to the West hasnt been conducted yet to Larsons knowledge. and Renstrom says that unless Utah builds a long-promised pipeline to pump water 140 miles from Lake . Meanwhile, a rookie Democrat running for governor in Californias recall election last year proposed declaring a state of emergency in order to build a similar project. You couldbuild a pipeline from the Mississippi or Missouri Rivers. Trans-national pipelines would also impact ecological resources. We want to have more sustainable infrastructure. Local hurdles include endangered species protections, wetlands protections, drinking water supply considerations and interstate shipping protections. Specifically, start with a line from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River at Lake Powell, where a seven-state compact divvies up the water. Safety concerns increased in 2020 after a pipeline in Mississippi ruptured in a landslide, releasing a heavier-than-air plume of carbon dioxide that displaced oxygen near the ground. In fact, she and others noted, many such ideas have been studied since the 1940s. The driver of the truck was not injured. Twitter, Follow us on But the idea hasnever completely died. Los Angeles-area water districts have implemented much of what Famiglietti mentioned. 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. Twitter, Follow us on Instagram, Follow us on It is a minimum of 1,067 miles from the Mississippi River to the Colorado River if it could be built in a fairly straight line (St. Louis to Grand Junction, Colorado, based on the route of. As an engineer, I can guarantee you that it is doable, Viadero said. The only newsroom focused on exploring solutions at the intersection of climate and justice. Why it's a longshot: First, to get across the Continental Divide and into the Colorado River, you'd need an uphill pipeline about 1,000 miles long, which is longer than any other drinking water . Just this past summer, the idea caused a firestorm of letters to the editor at a California newspaper. Would itbe expensive? But there are tons of things that can be done but arent ever done.. and Renstrom says that unless Utah builds a long-promised pipeline to pump water 140 miles from Lake . Stories of similar projects often share the same ending, from proposals in Iowa and Minnesota to those between Canada and the United States. Environmental writerMarc Reisner said the plan was one of "brutal magnificence" and "unprecedented destructiveness." The memorial also suggests that the pipeline could be used as stormwater infrastructure to prevent regular flooding along the . [1] To Larsons knowledge, an in-depth feasibility study specifically on pumping Mississippi River water to the West hasnt been conducted yet. In the meantime, researchers encourage more feasible and sustainable options, including better water conservation, water recycling, and less agricultural reliance. California Departmentof Water Resourcesspokeswoman Maggie Maciasin an email: In considering the feasibility of a multi-state water conveyance infrastructure, the extraordinary costs that would be involved in planning, designing, permitting, constructing, and then maintaining and operating such a vast system of infrastructure would be significant obstacles when compared to the water supply benefits and flood water reduction benefits that it would provide. "To my mind, the overriding fatal flaw for large import schemes is the time required to become operational. (Unrecognizable. Lake Mead, a lifeline for water in Los Angeles and the West, tips toward crisis, July 11). Donate today to keep our climate news free. He said a major wastewater reuse project that MWD plans to implement by 2032 could ultimately yield up 150 million gallons of potable water a day from treated waste. Each year worsens our receipt of rain and snow. The elephant in the room, according to Fort, is agriculture, which accounts for more than 80 percent of water withdrawals from the Colorado River. Instagram, Follow us on Your support keeps our unbiased, nonprofit news free. Million told Grist that hes secured partial funding for the project from multiple banks and the infrastructure company MasTec, but it remains unclear how much he would have to charge to make the project profitable. Page Contact Information: Missouri Water Data Support Team Page Last Modified: 2023-03-04 08:46:14 EST The largest eastern river, the Mississippi, has about 30 times the average annual flow of the Colorado, and the Columbia has close to 10 times. 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. A drive up Interstate 5 shows how muchland has been fallowed due tolack of water. Filling Lake Mead with Mississippi River Water No Longer a Pipe Dream. There are at least half a dozen major water pipeline projects under consideration throughout the region, ranging from ambitious to outlandish. Do they thank us for using our water? Page Contact Information: Missouri Water Data Support Team Page Last Modified: 2023-03-04 08:46:14 EST . Formal large-scale water importation proposals have existed in the United States since at least the 1960s, when an American company devised the North American Water and Power Alliance to redistribute Alaskan water across the continent using reservoirs and canals. People need to focus on their realistic solutions.. 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. YouTube star and Democratic political novice Kevin Paffrath proposed the Mississippi River pipeline last week during a debate among candidates seeking to replace Gov. Whereas I understand water rights, but globalwarming has introduced new priorities. Experts we spoke with agreed the feat would be astronomical. Follow us on Major projects to restore the coast and save brown pelicans and other endangered species are now underway, and Mississippi sediment delivery is at the heart of them. A federal report from a decade ago pegged an optimistic cost estimate for a similar pipeline at $14 billion and said the project would take 30 years to build; a Colorado rancher who championed the idea around the same time, meanwhile, estimated its costs at $23 billion. The resulting fresh water would bepiped northto the thirsty state. Water from these and other large rivers pour. But interest spans deeper than that. Above, the droughts effects can be seen at a marina on June 29. Here's How. For decades, key stewards of the river have ignored the massive water loss, instead allocating Arizona, California, Nevada and Mexico their share of the river without subtracting whats evaporated. 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. This latest version would curve up through the Wyoming flatlands and back down to Fort Collins, a distance of around 340 miles. Arizona and Nevada residents must curb their use of water from the Colorado River, and California could be next. One benefit would be flood control for the Eastern USA . Drainage area 171,500 square miles . The water, more than 44 million gallons a day, would come from 115 wells drilled between 1,000 and 5,000 feet deep in Beryl-Enterprise, a basin where the state has restricted use of shallow groundwater due to over-extraction. Not mentioned was the great grand-daddy of all schemes for re-allocating water, known as the North American Water and Power Authority Plan. Every year, NAWAPA would deliver 158 million acre-feet of water to the US, Canada, and Mexico more than 10 times the annual flow of the Colorado River. Mississippi River drought will impact your grocery bill. Engineers said the pipelineidea is technically feasible. Lower Mississippi River flow means less sediment carried down to Louisiana, where its used for coastal restoration. All rights reserved. Still, he admits the road hasnt always been easy, and that victory is far from guaranteed. The list of projects that run on similarly magical thinking goes on: Utah wants to build a pipeline of its own from Lake Powell to the fast-growing city of St. George, but Lake Powell has almost no water left. The state also set aside funds in 2018 to study possible imports from the Missouri or Mississippi Rivers, but to date, the study hasnt been done, he said. But there are tons of things that can be done but arent ever done.. Your support keeps our unbiased, nonprofit news free. It would turn the Southwest into an oasis, and the Great Basin into productive farmland. Absolutely. Famiglietti said as long as urban areas in the West don't persist in untrammeled growth, they have enough supply for the immediate future, with the ability to rip out lawns, capture stormwater runoff in local reservoirs, do municipal audits to fix leaks and other tools. We can move water, and weve proven our desire to do it. Tina Peters convicted of government obstruction charge, acquitted of obstructing a police officer, (720) 263-2338 Call, text, Signal or WhatsApp, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. To the editor: With the threat of brownouts and over-stressed power grids, dwindling water resources in California and the call to reduce consumption by 15%, I want to point out we are not all in this together. In it, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Idaho Attorney General Ral Labrador contend that a new interpretation of a Clean Water Act rule is too vague, oversteps the bounds of federal authority and puts the liberties of states and private property owners at risk. he said. As an engineer, I can guarantee you that it is doable, Viadero said. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Unrecognizable. Lake Mead, a lifeline for water in Los Angeles and the West, tips toward crisis. Famiglietti also said while oil companies are willing to spend millions because their product yields high profits per gallon, that's not the case with water, typically considered a public resource. Much of the sediment it was carrying was dropped in the slow moving water of the Delta. Stories of similar projects often share the same ending, from proposals in Iowa and Minnesota to those between Canada and the United States. 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. 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. The idea is as old and dusty as the desert Southwest: Pipe abundant Great Lakes water to parched cities out West, such as Phoenix and Las Vegas. Tribes in the Colorado River Basin are fighting for their water. In 1964, a California engineering company proposed diverting flows from the Yukon and Mackenzie River watersheds, shared by Canada and the U.S., all the way to southern California and into Mexico. It might be in the trillions, but it probably does exist.. PROVISIONAL DATA SUBJECT TO REVISION. Arizona lawmakers want to build a pipeline from the Mississippi River more than a thousand miles away, a Colorado rancher wants to pipe water 300 miles across the Rockies, and Utah wants. Proponents of these projects argue that they could stabilize western cities for decades to come, connecting populations with unclaimed water rights. But moving water from one drought-impacted area to another is not a solution.. 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. Officials imposed the state's first-ever water restrictions on cities and towns, and California farmers are drilling deeper and . For one, theres no longer enough unclaimed water to make most pipeline projects cost-effective. Mississippi River drought will impact your grocery bill. The federal Bureau of Reclamation has already looked at piping 600,000 acre-feet of water a year from either the Missouri or the Mississippi. 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. This is the country that built the Hoover Dam, and where Los Angeles suburbs were created by taking water from Owens Lake. 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. Yahoo, Reddit and ceaseless headlines about a 22-year megadrought and killer flash floods, not to mention dead bodies showing up on Lake Meads newly exposed shoreline, have galvanized reader interest this summer. The 2012 study didn't discount either option but. People fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta's Elk Slough near Courtland, California, on Tuesday, March 24, 2020. Their detractors counter that, in an era of permanent aridification driven by climate change, the only sustainable solution is not to bring in more water, but to consume less of it. California Gov. She and others worked to persuade reluctant consumers, builders and policymakers to ditchwidely usedsix-gallon flush toilets in favor of perfectly effective two-gallon versions. Drought conditions plagued the region throughout 2022, prompting concerns over river navigation. CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. The idea of drinking even heavily treated liquid wastemay seem unpalatable, but Westfordthinks people will adapt. If a portion of the farmers in the region were to change crops or fallow their fields, the freed-up water could sustain growing cities. About 33% of vegetables and 66% of fruits and nuts are produced in California for consumption for the nation. About 33% of vegetables and 66% of fruits and nuts are produced in California for consumption for the nation. An additional analysis emerged a decade later when Roger Viadero, an environmental scientist and engineer at Western Illinois University, and his graduate students assessed proposals suggested in last summers viral editorials.