American Treasure: Water and the West
Water is a source of life and a symbol of life and purification in many human cultures.
All living things depend on water for survival, and in the drought-prone American West, access to and control of water, also means power and wealth.
Currently experiencing drought conditions, Californians have been urged to conserve water, since the state's agricultural and tourist economies depend on natural grasslands, well irrigated fields, and winter sports such as skiing to generate jobs and income for its citizens.
Ranchers, growers, truckers, travel agents, everyone suffers without abundant water.
You can not eat silicon chips, or exclusively drink Chardonnay, and even the state's marijuana crops need water.
The state depends on the snow pack in the Sierra Nevada for most of its water, and the snow levels are ten to thirty percent below normal in winter.
Fire warnings have been issued long before fire season, always a worrisome and potentially catastrophic situation.
While the rest of the nation shovels snow from driveways and navigates icy roads, California and the West pray for rain.
Texas also experiences periodic devastating droughts, as do other Western states.
In such arid regions, water often means not only life, but war.
Archeologists differ on reasons for the collapse of the ancient Native American Anasazi culture of the American Southwest, which disappeared toward the end of the 13th century, but speculation focuses on pressures of increased population and prolonged drought conditions, leading to conflict and dispersion.
In the Golden State, historic tensions have existed between the well-watered north, and arid and thirsty southern California.
Major water conflicts began when Frederick Eaton was elected mayor of Los Angeles in 1898 and chose William Mulholland as his water czar.
The establishment of the City of Angels as a great metropolis can be attributed to the genius, foresight, and, depending on the point of view, the ruthlessness of the two men in pursuing their vision: water, flowing into an arid land.
Mulholland directed the building of the Los Angeles aqueduct, completed in 1913.
Requiring 2,000 workers and the digging of 164 tunnels, it diverted water from the Owens Valley in the north to the growing city.
While it brought great benefits to the south, the Valley and its residents suffered from the economic and environmental consequences of water diversion.
The Sierra snow pack may seem a distant vision of heavenly beauty and untouched purity, but as the snow melts in spring, the water feeds directly into one of the most advanced water systems in the world.
Created in 1960, the California State Water Project serves 25 million people and the eighth largest economy in the world, equal in size to the Russian Federation or Italy.
The world's largest publicly built and operated water and power development and conveyance system, the project diverts water from northern California rivers to San Francisco, agricultural areas in the San Joaquin Valley, and southern California.
As with diversion of water from the Owens Valley, such a vast reallocation of water resources can have severe environmental impact on sensitive ecosystems, especially in years of drought.
The challenges of growth, sustainable economic development, and preservation of the environment will continue to be a source of both conflict and creation, in a land where water means many things: power, wealth, and ultimately, life itself.
One can only pray that balanced management policies prevail, and also, of course, for the rains to come.
All living things depend on water for survival, and in the drought-prone American West, access to and control of water, also means power and wealth.
Currently experiencing drought conditions, Californians have been urged to conserve water, since the state's agricultural and tourist economies depend on natural grasslands, well irrigated fields, and winter sports such as skiing to generate jobs and income for its citizens.
Ranchers, growers, truckers, travel agents, everyone suffers without abundant water.
You can not eat silicon chips, or exclusively drink Chardonnay, and even the state's marijuana crops need water.
The state depends on the snow pack in the Sierra Nevada for most of its water, and the snow levels are ten to thirty percent below normal in winter.
Fire warnings have been issued long before fire season, always a worrisome and potentially catastrophic situation.
While the rest of the nation shovels snow from driveways and navigates icy roads, California and the West pray for rain.
Texas also experiences periodic devastating droughts, as do other Western states.
In such arid regions, water often means not only life, but war.
Archeologists differ on reasons for the collapse of the ancient Native American Anasazi culture of the American Southwest, which disappeared toward the end of the 13th century, but speculation focuses on pressures of increased population and prolonged drought conditions, leading to conflict and dispersion.
In the Golden State, historic tensions have existed between the well-watered north, and arid and thirsty southern California.
Major water conflicts began when Frederick Eaton was elected mayor of Los Angeles in 1898 and chose William Mulholland as his water czar.
The establishment of the City of Angels as a great metropolis can be attributed to the genius, foresight, and, depending on the point of view, the ruthlessness of the two men in pursuing their vision: water, flowing into an arid land.
Mulholland directed the building of the Los Angeles aqueduct, completed in 1913.
Requiring 2,000 workers and the digging of 164 tunnels, it diverted water from the Owens Valley in the north to the growing city.
While it brought great benefits to the south, the Valley and its residents suffered from the economic and environmental consequences of water diversion.
The Sierra snow pack may seem a distant vision of heavenly beauty and untouched purity, but as the snow melts in spring, the water feeds directly into one of the most advanced water systems in the world.
Created in 1960, the California State Water Project serves 25 million people and the eighth largest economy in the world, equal in size to the Russian Federation or Italy.
The world's largest publicly built and operated water and power development and conveyance system, the project diverts water from northern California rivers to San Francisco, agricultural areas in the San Joaquin Valley, and southern California.
As with diversion of water from the Owens Valley, such a vast reallocation of water resources can have severe environmental impact on sensitive ecosystems, especially in years of drought.
The challenges of growth, sustainable economic development, and preservation of the environment will continue to be a source of both conflict and creation, in a land where water means many things: power, wealth, and ultimately, life itself.
One can only pray that balanced management policies prevail, and also, of course, for the rains to come.
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