Cities of the West

Developing state water roadmaps is essential

By
Learn more about William McKenzie.
William McKenzie
Senior Editorial Advisor
George W. Bush Institute

New turnout facility from the California Aqueduct on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023. Officials say the project will help the region prepare for the effects of climate change. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images.)



California


Texas


Colorado

In recent years, drought conditions in California have been increasing in intensity and duration, punctuated by more intense atmospheric river-driven storms and higher flood flows (weather whiplash). The state’s population is anticipated to increase 73% between 2020 and 2070. Existing water supplies are projected to decline by approximately 18% during that period. Temperatures have warmed, and the timing and amount of precipitation has changed, causing shifts in runoff and streamflows. It is clear this is not a temporary phenomenon, but rather a permanent trend toward aridification of the West.
Source: California Water Plan 2023 Source: Texas Water Development Board Source: Colorado Water Plan 2023

 

Energy, water, and food are the top three threats to humanity, Nobel laureate Richard Smalley of Rice University stated in 2003. Two decades later, those three challenges remain on any list of imminent and long-term threats to global stability. Producing energy requires ample amounts of clean water, and both plentiful sources of energy and water are required to produce food.

The key, though, is ample amounts of water. The data listed above highlight the challenges of accessing and developing supplies in key parts of the American West.

Meeting these challenges starts with planning. In Texas, for example, water planners focus on “desired future conditions” for the state’s nine major and 22 minor aquifers. Without a roadmap, targets are likely to go unmet when a catastrophe like a prolonged severe drought arises.

 

“Energy, water and food are the world’s three most critical resources. Although this fact is widely acknowledged in policy circles, the interdependence of these resources on one another is significantly underappreciated.”
— Michael Webber, author of Thirst for Power: Energy, Water, and Human Survival.

 

Sketching out a vision for the future must come with enough flexibility to adjust. When done right, looking ahead can unlock public funds that states need to develop their water supplies over the next 50, even 100 years.

Establishing a clear path forward is especially crucial for Western states and the communities they serve. Texas. New Mexico. Arizona. Nevada. Colorado. California. Each wrestle with uncertainties about its water supplies and needs, and each state’s leadership should consider these essentials:

  • Make water planning statewide and involve relevant voices.
  • Make the plan long term and short term. Look out five, 50, even 100 years.
  • Include and promote diverse strategies that reduce risk.
  • Make the plan particular to a state’s regions.
  • Focus on supply and demand.
  • Examine where growth is likely to occur.
  • Use up-to-date data and get it to local planners.
  • Be honest about needs, including realistic projections of droughts.
  • Emphasize the benefits of water planning.

Let’s break apart some of these fundamentals to see how they might be working – or not working – across parts of the West.