0.8 Water  (Page 4/4)

Water rights are usually established by law. In the eastern United States, the " Doctrine of Riparian Rights " is the basis of rights of use. Anyone whose land is next to a flowing stream can use the water as long as some is left for people downstream. Things are handled differently in the western United States, which uses a "first-come, first-served" approach known as the " Principle of Prior Appropriation " is used. By using water from a stream, the original user establishes a legal right for the ongoing use of the water volume originally taken. Unfortunately, when there is insufficient water in a stream, downstream users suffer.

The case of the Colorado River highlights the problem of water rights. The federal government built a series of dams along the Colorado River, which drains a huge area of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The purpose of the project was to provide water for cities and towns in this arid area and for crop irrigation. However, as more and more water was withdrawn from these dams, less water was available downstream. Only a limited volume of water reached the Mexican border and this was saline and unusable. The Mexican government complained that their country was being denied use of water that was partly theirs, and as a result a desalinization plant was built to provide a flow of usable water.

Common law generally gives property owners rights to the groundwater below their land. However, a problem can arise in a situation where several property owners tap into the same groundwater source. The Ogallala Aquifer, which stretches from Wyoming to Texas, is used extensively by farmers for irrigation. However, this use is leading to groundwater depletion, as the aquifer has a very slow recharge rate. In such cases as this, a general plan of water use is needed to conserve water resources for future use.

Water diversion

Water is necessary for all life, as well as for human agriculture and industry. Great effort and expense has gone into diverting water from where it occurs naturally to where people need it to be. The large-scale redistribution of such a vital resource has consequences for both people and the environment. The three projects summarized below illustrate the costs and benefits and complex issues involved in water diversion.

Garrison diversion project

The purpose of the Garrison Diversion Project was to divert water from the Missouri River to the Red River in North Dakota, along the way irrigating more than a million acres of prairie, attracting new residents and industries, and providing recreation opportunities.

Construction began in the 1940s, and although $600 million has been spent, only 120 miles of canals and a few pumping stations have been built. The project has not been completed due to financial problems and widespread objections from environmentalists, neighboring states, and Canada. Some object to flooding rare prairie habitats. Many are concerned that moving water from one watershed to another will also transfer non-native and invasive species that could attack native organisms, devastate habitats, and cause economic harm to fishing and other industries. As construction and maintenance costs skyrocketed, taxpayers expressed concern that excessive public money was being spent on a project with limited public benefits.

Melamchi water supply project

The Kathmandu Valley in Nepal is an important urban center with insufficient water supplies. One million people receive piped water for just a few hours a day. Groundwater reservoirs are being drained, and water quality is quite low. The Melamchi Water Supply Project will divert water to Kathmandu through a 28 km tunnel from the Melamchi River in a neighboring valley. Expected to cost a half a billion dollars, the project will include improved water treatment and distribution facilities.

While the water problems in the Kathmandu Valley are severe, the project is controversial. Proponents say it will improve public health and hygiene and stimulate the local economy without harming the Melamchi River ecosystem. Opponents suggest that the environmental safeguards are inadequate and that a number of people will be displaced. Perhaps their biggest objection is that the project will privatize the water supply and raise costs beyond the reach of the poor. They claim that cheaper and more efficient alternatives have been ignored at the insistence of international banks, and that debt on project loans will cripple the economy.

South to north water diversion project

Many of the major cities in China are suffering from severe water shortages, especially in the northern part of the country. Overuse and industrial discharge has caused severe water pollution. The South to North Water Diversion project is designed to shift enormous amounts of water from rivers in southern China to the dry but populous northern half of the country. New pollution control and treatment facilities to be constructed at the same time should improve water quality throughout the country.

The diversion will be accomplished by the creation of three rivers constructed by man, each more than 1,000 km long. They will together channel nearly 50 billion cubic meters of water annually, creating the largest water diversion project in history. Construction is expected to take 10 years and cost $60 billion, but after 2 years of work, the diversion is already over budget.

Such a massive shift in water resources will have large environmental consequences throughout the system. Water levels in rivers and marshes will drop sharply in the south and rise in the north. People and wildlife will be displaced along the courses of the new rivers.

Despite its staggering scale, the South to North Project alone will not be sufficient to solve water shortages. China still will need to increase water conservation programs, make industries and agriculture more water efficient, and raise public awareness of sustainable water practices.