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Originally published on May 22, 2016 By All Things Considered听
As the Colorado River dries out, the seven states that rely on this body of water risk water scarcity. Colorado state historian Patty Limerick discusses preparations for water scarcity in the West.听
Transcript:听
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:听
Now we鈥檙e going to take the conversation closer to home. Water is becoming a major topic of concern in the American West. Just take the Colorado River. Forty million people in seven states depend upon it for drinking, farming and recreation, and the strain on the river is showing. For the last decade, the Colorado River has been completely dry by the time it completes its 1,400 mile journey to the Sea of Cortez.听
That鈥檚 just one reason we鈥檙e heading to Colorado on Tuesday for our live event series. And one of the people we鈥檒l meet up with there is Patty Limerick. She鈥檚 the faculty director for the Center for the American West in Boulder, and she鈥檚 also the Colorado state historian. Patty, thanks so much for joining us.听
PATTY LIMERICK: Oh, what a pleasure. Thanks so much for having me.听
MARTIN: Now you have a saying that I want to introduce everybody to. You call the last 100 years in the American West, quote, 鈥渢he era of improbable comfort made possible by a truly astonishing but taken for granted infrastructure,鈥� unquote. It鈥檚 catchy. But unpack that for me.听
LIMERICK: Oh, thank you. In my opinion, that鈥檚 just a wonderful way of saying after initial encounters of Euro-Americans with this region, they just thought, it鈥檚 too dry for conventional American settlement. It can鈥檛 happen here. Then all kinds of ingenuity and hard work kicked in, and this place became a very comfortable place to live.听
You turn on a faucet, you get water. You turn on a switch, you get electricity. It鈥檚 just a 鈥� it鈥檚 a remarkable transformation. And so if you look before this era and if you look at the future, that is implausible and improbable comfort. And it is not guaranteed for the ages. In fact, this is a time of great reckoning.听
MARTIN: Do I take that to mean that you believe that era is now over? And if so, why? Is it because of climate change, or is it because of demand?听
LIMERICK: Yeah, I think it鈥檚 petering out more than ended. I think a whole bunch of factors 鈥� certainly climate change 鈥� and as the managers of, well, most water utilities say it鈥檚 not that we鈥檙e moving from one determined, defined state of precipitation to another one. The past no longer really give us our bearings. We don鈥檛 know that there鈥檚 not going to be a new, stable normal. It鈥檚 really a state of continued uncertainty. I鈥檝e been in this area for 32 years, and I would say I see change.听
MARTIN: Now a World Bank report said that lack of water could give rise to a lot of interpersonal conflict. In your state, conflicts have already arisen with the eastern and western parts of the state sometimes in conflict over water rights. I mean, do you 鈥� is that something that you see?听
LIMERICK: I think it鈥檚 an open question. I would say there鈥檚 a very strong streak of collaboration. And the state of Colorado has a state water plan for the first time in its history. It was a very long process. And they squabbled, they fought, but then they reached some kind of report that they could all stand behind. Now having that as a written document is pretty different from having a new this is how we conduct ourselves and this is how water is allocated.听
MARTIN: So what I think I hear you saying is that conflict isn鈥檛 the only choice. What you also see鈥μ�
LIMERICK: No.听
MARTIN: 鈥re new pathways to collaboration around this because people are understanding just how crucial it is. So, Patty, before we let you go, why should people in other parts of the country care about this?听
LIMERICK: Because you can have droughts in the southeast. Georgia and Alabama 鈥� those states have squabbled over water during periods of drought. And bedrock 鈥� most important 鈥� water quality can create a problem of scarcity. I don鈥檛 want to take us off track, but Flint, Mich. is the place to remember 鈥� to think it鈥檚 not just the West.听
MARTIN: Patty Limerick is the Colorado state historian and the faculty director of the Center for the American West in Boulder. She will be joining me in Fort Collins, Colo., on Tuesday for our live event. It鈥檚 called The Future of Water. It鈥檚 a conversation about a lot of the things that we鈥檝e been talking about and more. You can start joining the conversation right now if you care to. Our hashtag is #nprh20. That鈥檚 on Tuesday in Fort Collins, Colo. Patty, thank you so much for joining us.听
LIMERICK: Oh, thank you. I can鈥檛 wait until Tuesday.听