The Utah Division of Water Resources published a 136-page Water Resource Plan on September 29th. They are looking for public comment on the plan through November 15th. You can download the Plan at https://water.utah.gov/2021waterplan/
The chart for the Kanab/Virgin River Basin, which is our source of water, shows how soon water demand outstrips current supply. It presents a dismal view if we don’t do three things: Increase our water supply, do a better job of conservation, and rethink how we grow as a community. The Plan talks about these issues and more.
I would appreciate knowing your thoughts about all of the issues discussed in the Plan. A virtual open house will also be held Oct. 20 from 7-8 p.m. Visit the website for links to the YouTube video stream or the Google Meet video conference.
Here are just a few excerpts from the Plan. I just finished my first read of the Plan, but haven’t absorbed it all yet. More to come.
- If we continue with traditional suburban development trends, Utah will not have the water needed to meet projected growth.
- The Division was underestimating secondary use (primarily agriculture) by nearly 30%.
- Evaporation from all storage reservoirs in the state is approximately 1.0 million acre-feet per year.
- Cloud seeding resulted in an average annual increase in runoff of nearly 186,700 acre-feet at a cost of about $2.20 per acre-foot (from a 2105 analysis).
- Installing secondary meters saves water. Data shows significant savings of 20-30%.
- Utah wants to expand the turf buyback program offered by local water conservancy districts along the Wasatch Front statewide.
- The agricultural sector accounts for about 75% of the state’s total water use.
- Water conservation alone will not be sufficient to meet all future needs. Agricultural to municipal and industrial (M&I) conversions and further water development will also be necessary.
- Statewide, the amount of water that may become available as a result of agricultural land conversion from 2020 through 2070 is estimated between 147,000 acre-feet and 245,000 acre-feet.
- There could be about 490,000 acre-feet of wastewater per year produced statewide by 2030.
- Water reused, rather than returned to the natural system, increases depletions, and may have a negative impact on the environment.
What about Washington County?
Even with water conservation and agricultural conversions, additional water will be needed in the Kanab Creek/Virgin River basin in the next 10 to 15 years to accommodate projected population growth. Agricultural conversions will only contribute a small amount to the reliable water supply due to limited irrigated agriculture remaining. The Santa Clara River and Virgin River flows are fully developed. Washington County residents achieved a 25% water-use reduction by 2015 and have continued to make progress. Reaching the target regional conservation goal will only extend water supplies by two or three years.
A Comment About Agriculture
An example of how crop selection can make a big difference in water consumed is the Beryl-Enterprise area in Iron County. Irrigators there recently converted many acres of alfalfa to corn, grain, or pasture in order to reduce groundwater depletions. Subsequent data from the Utah Division of Water Rights shows that average annual groundwater depletions have declined by an average of over 6,000 acre-feet annually.
Please share your comments and tell me about other Ivins issues I have not addressed in recent posts. CONTACT ME
Recent “Water” posts
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