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WATER SECURITYDiminishing Snowmelt to Make Colorado, Utah, Wyoming Resemble the Arid Southwest
New research predicts that changes in mountain snowmelt will shift peak stream flows to much earlier in the year for the vast Colorado River Basin, altering reservoir management and irrigation across the entire region. As a result, upper basin in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming may more closely resemble the arid Southwest.
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WATER SECURITYDoes Drought-Prone California Need Another Reservoir?
For a century, California and the West have grappled with the job of storing water. The first half of the 20th century was the heyday of western dams; now many of them are aging; they were designed for the needs and values of another era. Is California “dammed out?” Or could increasing reservoir capacity help the state ride out the new era of aridification?
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WATER SECURITYWestern River Compacts Were Innovative in the 1920s but Couldn’t Foresee Today’s Water Challenges
The Western U.S. is in a water crisis, from California to Nebraska. An ongoing drought is predicted to last at least through July 2022. Recent research suggests that these conditions may be better labeled aridification – meaning that warming and drying are long-term trends.
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WATER INNOVATION2022 Water Innovation Prizes Announced
MIT’s Water Innovation Prize helps translate water-related research and ideas into businesses and impact. Each year, student-led finalist teams pitch their innovations to students, faculty, investors, and people working in various water-related industries.
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WATER SECURITYAs Lake Powell Dries Up, the U.S. Turns to Creative Accounting for a Short-Term Fix
A new agreement calls for Western states to leave their drinking water in the reservoir — and act as if they didn’t.
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WASTEWATERImproving Efficiency of Sewer System Surveys
The UK’s vast network of over 525,000km of sewers is notoriously expensive to maintain. A new AI tool is set to improve the efficiency of surveying sewerage systems and has the potential to benefit the entire water industry.
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WATER SECURITYWith Dwindling Water Supplies, the Timing of Rainfall Matters
A new study shows it’s not how much extra water you give your plants, but when you give it that counts. This is especially true near Palm Springs, where the research team created artificial rainfall to examine the effects on plants over the course of two years.
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WATER SECURITYFuture Peak Flow Along Rio Grande to Arrive Early Due to Climate Change
The Rio Grande flows nearly 2,000 miles from its headwaters in the San Juan Mountains in southwestern Colorado to the Gulf of Mexico. It is the primary source of water for more than 13 million agricultural, municipal and industrial water users in Colorado, New Mexico, Texas and northern Chihuahua, Mexico. A new study finds that peak runoff on the Rio Grande could arrive earlier in the season, negatively impacting a watershed where demand already exceeds supply.
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WATER SECURITYNew National Water Alliance Aims to Predict Water-Related Hazards, Manage U.S. Water Resources
The new Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology (CIROH) is composed of 28 academic institutions, non-profit organizations, and government and industry partners across the United States and Canada, aiming to better predict water-related hazards and manage the nation’s water resources.
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WATER SECURITYThe Financial Risks of Water Resilience Planning in California
California’s Water Resilience Portfolio Initiative is a multi-billion dollar effort that encourages different water utilities and irrigation districts to work together to build shared infrastructure to reduce the effects of droughts, but a number of questions remain regarding how best to structure these agreements.
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WATER SECURITYUranium Detectable in Two-Thirds of U.S. Community Water System Monitoring Records
A study on metal concentrations in U.S. community water systems (CWS) found that metal concentrations were particularly elevated in CWSs serving semi-urban, Hispanic communities independent of location or region.
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WATER SECURITYShared Water Resources: Source of Both Peace and Conflict
From the Euphrates to the Mekong, dams that ensure one country’s water supply risk leaving others parched. But shared water resources can be a source of peace as well as conflict.
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WATR SECURITYGroundwater Levels Fall Across Western and Central Kansas
Average groundwater levels across western and central Kansas fell by more than a foot in 2021, with the greatest declines in the southwest portion of the state. “The entire state is currently in some stage of drought and even with recent snowfalls, I bet it remains that way,” one expert said.
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WATER SECURITYLake Evaporation Patterns Will Shift with Climate Change
Lakes serve as a major global source of freshwater. As temperatures continue to get warmer, so will lakes. As global average temperatures rise, lake evaporation is projected to increase at double the rate of ocean evaporation. However, future increases in lake evaporation vary substantially across regions.
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WATER SECURITYWater Resources Depletion Near Large Urban Areas
Researchers analyzed the spatial distribution of water resources depletion in connection with proximity to large urban areas and defined a model that might prove fundamental to mitigate the impact of urbanization on the ecosystem.
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The long view
WATER SECURITYNew National Water Alliance Aims to Predict Water-Related Hazards, Manage U.S. Water Resources
The new Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology (CIROH) is composed of 28 academic institutions, non-profit organizations, and government and industry partners across the United States and Canada, aiming to better predict water-related hazards and manage the nation’s water resources.
WATER SECURITYThe Financial Risks of Water Resilience Planning in California
California’s Water Resilience Portfolio Initiative is a multi-billion dollar effort that encourages different water utilities and irrigation districts to work together to build shared infrastructure to reduce the effects of droughts, but a number of questions remain regarding how best to structure these agreements.