3.7 - Colorado River Basin

Question 1

Integrated Water Resource Management

Answer 1

Where the river basin is treated holistically to protect their environmental quality, and ensure efficient usage/distribution

Question 2

Colarado River Basin

Answer 2

Source - Rocky Mountains, flowing through the Colorado Plateau to the mouth at Gulf of Mexico
97% of flow in USA and 3% in Mexico
1922 - Agreement Of Colorado Compact with water allocated by the state, however increasing drought conditions makes this difficult.

Question 3

Colorado Compact

Answer 3

Started in 1922 overtime, involved Mexico, induced development plans, had HEP/irrigation regulations to reduce overusage and environmental protection laws.

Question 4

Main Criticism of Colorado Compact

Answer 4

Allocation was based on periods when precipitation was above average, when in fact drier conditions are and were the norm.

Question 5

Integrated Drainage Basin Management (Conflict Inevitable?)

Answer 5

Can overcome water conflicts e.g. Colorado, but tend to forget climate change, smaller catchments tend to be more successful as GW can be recharged

Question 6

Water Sharing Frameworks And Treaties (Conflict Inevitable?)

Answer 6

Treaties that inadvertley create inequity won’t survive e.g. Colorado, However, treaties with balances and checks will survive e.g. Nile

Question 7

Upper Basin - Issues

Answer 7

Plentiful water supply has fuelled inefficient agriculture, 80% of the river is used for agriculture leaving little for HEP etc.

Question 8

Lower Basin - Issues

Answer 8

California, Nevada & Arizona are growing quickly with due cities meaning upstream states must negotiate water rights.
Desalination, irrigation restrictions can be enforced

Question 9

Other concerns

Answer 9

Indigenous groups weren’t considered leaving some of them without water.