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The Colorado River is a marvel. It meanders through seven US states and two Mexican states for 1,450 miles, all the while supporting human life and wildlife. It creates incredible vistas through its dramatically changing landscape, from the snowy Rockies across the Colorado Plateau, and through the Sonoran and Mojave deserts. Unfortunately, all that important flow is at risk. The conservation group American Rivers named it the most endangered river in the US in its recently-released annual report, as reported by Colorado Public Radio.
Climate change has affected the river during the last 20 years of drought, which is depleting it and the important reservoirs of Lake Powell and Lake Mead.
In March, Lake Powell, which fuels hydropower production, reduced to a record low despite aggressive efforts with state and federal governments to curb the loss. More frightening to contemplate is the fact that the river and its tributaries supply drinking water to 40 million people, and that the basin is home to 30 Native American tribes. Irrigation, too, is a concern, with 5 million acres of farmland relying on the river’s beneficence, as is the safety and health of wildlife who inhabit the riparian environment.
But American Rivers isn’t just sounding the alarm; it’s providing some guidance to move forward, although the answers aren’t easy. The ten-point checklist addresses strategies like updating agricultural infrastructure, regulating snow melt runoff, obtaining water rights from retiring coal plants, covering up canals and reservoirs to reduce evaporation, and incentivizing water use reduction, among others.
The Colorado River last showed up in the #1 position on the endangered list in 2013. In second place this year is the Snake River which flows through Washington, Oregon and Idaho; followed by the Mobile River in Alabama; Maine’s Atlantic Salmon rivers; and the Coosa River which streams through Alabama and Georgia, in order. The full report names ten at-risk rivers.
'Failure is simply not an option, given all that depends on a healthy, flowing Colorado River,' reads the group’s website.