UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The latest episode of Growing Impact discusses how climate change and overuse of the Colorado River have significantly decreased the volume of the fifth largest river in the U.S. By providing water to seven states in the southwest United States as well as northern Mexico, the Colorado River supports more than a trillion dollars in economic activity. A team of researchers looks to understand how climate change and agricultural adaptation will affect water availability in the Upper Colorado River Basin.
“In the past 20 years or so, we've been seeing this prolonged drought in the region, which means stream flows in the river are going down, and it means storage in our reservoirs is going down,” said Antonia Hadjimichael, assistant professor in the Department of Geosciences. “It also means that our ability to provide water to all the states is compromised.”
Much of the Colorado River supplies water for agriculture, with more than 5 million acres of land dedicated to growing crops for both human consumption and livestock feed, according to Hadjimichael. Additionally, due to the river crossing multiple state borders as well as an international border, there are numerous legal complexities on how the water may be allocated to different users.
“When we have plenty of water, that's no problem,” said Hadjimichael. “When we don't have enough water, it starts creating problems with who gets what because if I have a high seniority, I could get 100% of what I need. And if I have a low seniority, I might get nothing.”
This is a major concern in the arid Southwest, Hadjimichael said.
“Let's say you grow grass, and it's now taking more than 100 millimeters of extra water to grow that grass surface than it took some three to four decades ago,” said Meetpal Kukal, assistant research professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering. “That's a huge change in demand.”
But the impact of a shrinking Colorado River goes beyond agriculture.
“The way that I think about it is that any sector influenced by water or temperature could really be affected by these changes to water availability,” said Alex Thames, a doctoral student in the Department of Geosciences with a climate science dual title. “In that respect, almost every sector is affected.”
Growing Impact is a podcast by the Institute of Energy and the Environment (IEE). It features Penn State researchers who have been awarded IEE seed grants and discusses their foundational work as they further their projects. The podcast is available on multiple platforms, including YouTube, Apple, Google, Amazon and Spotify.