The Colorado River Is Dying - And It Could Crash The Economy | Answers With Joe

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The Colorado River is often called The Lifeline of the Southwest. 40 million people rely on it. It supports a $1.7 trillion economy. And it is quickly drying up.
So let's start 2022 with a look at the Colorado River. What's causing this to happen? What's being done about it? And just how bad is it going to get if nothing changes?
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LINKS LINKS LINKS:
www.azcentral.com/story/news/...
www.greenbiz.com/article/colo...
www.nytimes.com/2021/08/16/cl...
www.greenbiz.com/article/colo...
www.buzzfeednews.com/article/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/s...
watershed.ucdavis.edu/educati...
mywaterearth.com/where-does-t...
www.kpbs.org/news/environment...
www.mygrandcanyonpark.com/par...
guestguidepublications.com/mo...
blogs.edf.org/growingreturns/2...
savethecolorado.org/the-river...
www.thedenverchannel.com/news...
www.azcentral.com/story/news/...
www.smithsonianmag.com/scienc...
azgovernor.gov/governor/news/...
phys.org/news/2019-08-west-ca...
news.azpm.org/p/newsfeature/2...

[@cujocujo4942]

I did a report on this in 1998 and it's amazing how nothing gets better.

[@phrozenwun]

Make it illegal for HOA's to mandate lawns. Actually, just make HOA's illegal, won't solve the water problem but it will make us all happier.

[@willsmith7956]

Mr life has totally changed since I started investing in crypto now I get maximum returns on my investments with the help of Mr Nick Maverick

[@BenSullinsOfficial]

One creative idea I saw recently was to cover the canals with solar panels. It generates electricity, reduces evaporation, and improves panel efficiency due to the water keeping them cool. Maybe then Phoenix can continue to build out lego housing communities out in the middle of no where to squeak out more profits.

[@RandallsLittleAdventures]

I took away from this that maybe, just maybe farming in a desert and having to water it might have not been a great idea. Meanwhile a few miles from my home, prime cropland (that didn't need to be watered) is being covered with concrete and 14,000 homes. Yeah Buddy, we be smart!

[@briangarrow448]

I’ve worked on power plants, petroleum plants, flood control systems, water and wastewater treatment plants and it amazes me how little my fellow citizens understand the importance of these facilities. As my buddy, an electric company lineman says, “We are overpaid and invisible until they flip that switch and nothing happens.”

[@carrjack]

Maybe Las Vegas shouldn't be there? Maybe we shouldn't be flood irrigating alfalfa in the desert. Maybe golf courses in Arizona and Utah are a stupid idea. Everybody is so uncomfortable saying what needs to be said. We know where the water is going. It is being misused. Climate change is a completely different conversation that we should be having but acknowledging the poor land management and short sighted profit seeking schemes that have destroyed ecosystems and violently displaced native groups across the country should be the main focus.

[@korbose7859]

When joe talks, I listen.

[@notetoself5474]

As someone who has boated on lake Mead and the river for almost 50 years now and has seen the drastic changes with my own eyes, I feel most likely the lake and river may be doomed unfortunately.

[@robfisher3790]

F compromising! I'm an engineer. We solve problems by building. I know it sounds crazy, but a giant aqueduct from the ocean to an enclosed evaporater next to an inland basin highpoint. Modern Marvel's was my favorite show on the former History Channel. This could be one of those future marvels.

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

Another factor that has led to the river drying up that isn't mentioned here are golf courses. Golf courses in Nevada and Arizona use the river water

[@larrywagner1432]

As someone who lives in the Rocky Mountain West (Wyoming), I don’t think that most Americans really understand how dangerous water levels of rivers have been. While it is a major water source, the Colorado River isn’t the only river that has been negatively impacted by climate change. The North Platte is seeing an every decreasing water level year after year. This is having a direct impact on the crops that are produced in Nebraska as farmers are seeing less water coming down the Platte from Wyoming. This has over the years cause issues between the State because of contracts and agreements that were signed between Wyoming and Nebraska. The mountains, which just 10 years ago had full, deep, snow covered peaks year round, are now far too often lacking that snow. That lack of snow at high elevations means that, at the end of the day, there is less water in the rivers. This is a major problem that is a reflection of the negative impact of global warming.

[@BenjaminVaterlaus]

AZ boy here. I love AZ and glad you were highlighting this. It's been something that we're not ignorant of (but many people are unaware of these problems). Thanks again for talking about this! One note: Gila (river and Native American tribes) is pronounced "Hee-lah" not Gill-ah. :)

[@roesler]

Hey Joe, you might want to research the region of Mendoza, in Argentina, just for fun. It's in a iteral desert, but because of water management they were able to become the biggest wine producer in the country, while also thriving in agriculture*. The two main things they do are: 1. recovering water from melting ice and snow from the Andes and 2. treat every day as a water shortage day, even when there's rain. Which means, even if you don't have a water shortage, the city and the farms are only allowed a limited water suppy, and the surplus of rainy days is stored to be used in the dry seasons. It's super interesting, and it reay shows how proper management can make a huge difference on limited resources.

[@rikcoach1]

Thanks for the invitation to add to the video. To add to the good news, the Ogalala aquifer feeding Arizona, west Texas and New Mexico is near collapsing and, due to decreased rainfall and increased pressure through use, there is literally no way for it to refill except for population collapse and several hundreds of years of rainfall for it to fill up again. Happy New Year everyone.

[@Solar_Max]

JOE, Glad to see you talking about this. It would be great if you would do a few more episodes on water; for example how over the last 50 years the Ogallala Aquifer, one of the world's largest aquifers the runs from Texas to Wyoming supplies about 30% of America's agricultural lands is being quickly depleted, leaving some farms, especially on its western edge with dry wells. One the glacier melt ice in the aquifer is gone, those farms will return to grassland if we are lucky, and dessert if not. Or do one on the how Mexico city, the central valley of California, and Jakarta are sinking because of the depletion of groundwater. Another nice episode would be about cities like Chennai, India (population about 10 million) that have run out of water. If we don't allocate and use our resources sustainably, it will end our civilization. This is as important (and linked to) climate change, but most people are not aware of how seriously we will soon be in trouble if we don't fix this now.

[@azraelraven1041]

I've lived in the vegas metro area ever since i was an infant and I worked on the hoover dam for over a year and let me tell you, standing over the dam, looking into the lake, and seeing that bathline is always disheartening

[@Summerof-dh4re]

I live in Las Vegas. We have a $36 water bill. We changed all the plants to ones that are native to Australia such as Eucalyptus trees. we have zero water going to our plants.

[@ZEROn7m]

I did my bachelors on the Colorado river problematic. It is Terrifiing how Disasterous this is.

[@EASY23PHX]

I live in Arizona and have watched the water level at Mead change dramatically over my lifetime. Thank you for this video to spotlight the challenges the future holds for us.