Glen Canyon Heart of the Colorado River

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Glen Canyon Heart of the Colorado River

• Glen Canyon Institute

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Glen Canyon
Originally Proposed as a National Park in the
1930s 1940s
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• Because of Global Warming and increased use of
  the river, Glen Canyon is restoring.

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2005
1964
Cathedral in the Desert
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Cathedral in the Desert 2005
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Waterfalls Return in Davis Gulch October 2006
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• Lower Escalante River Canyon
• Little Remains of Lake Powell

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North Fork of Willow Creek
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Archaeological Sites Emerging
Fort Moqui
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Bishop Canyon
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Moqui Steps in Forbidding Canyon
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Hole-in-the-Rock Inscriptions after 50 years of
inundation
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Narrows of Fifty Mile Gulch
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Bathtub ring already disappearing
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Lower Escalante River
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Springs emerge as maidenhair ferns return
Mountain Sheep Canyon
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2004
1962
LaGorce Arch
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New waterfalls
Willow Gulch
Clear Creek
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Narrows sections are quickly cleaned by seasonal
floods.
Fifty Mile Gulch
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Hite 11/06
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Willow Gulch
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Swett Creek
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Dozens of unnamed side canyons
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What is the Future of Lake Powell and the
Colorado River?

• There are four very important events that affect
  Lake Powells future.
• 1. Evaporative losses
• 2. Sedimentation
• 3. Development of water by a rapidly growing
  population.
• 4. Global Warming

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Evaporative Losses
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1 million acre feet

• Lake Powell when full - loses nearly 1 million
  acre feet of water or more than 6 of the
  Colorado River's annual flow
• This is more than three times Nevada's annual
  allotment.

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• Since created, more than 40 MAF of water has been
  lost to evaporation and bank seepage.
• Evaporative losses will increase with global
  warming.

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Water Budget at Lake Mead

• Given current demands in the Lower Basin
  (including Mexico), and minimum objective release
  from Lake Powell, Lake Mead storage will continue
  to decline
• Inflow 9.0 maf (release from Powell
  side inflows)
• Outflow - 9.5 maf
• (LB and Mexico apportionments
• downstream regulation, gains and losses)
• Mead evaporation loss - 0.8 maf
• Balance - 1.3 maf

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Does not include reservoir seepage from Lake
Powell ( X maf/yr)
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Sedimentation
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• The Colorado River is one of the siltiest river
  systems in the world.
• It was named Colorado by Spanish Explorers
  because of its muddy red water.

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• When Glen Canyon Dam was built, the effects of
  sedimentation were not well understood.

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Since Glen Canyon Dam was completed, it has
trapped massive amounts of sediment behind it.
Hite before Lake Powell
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• Each day, the equivalent of 30,000 dump truck
  loads of sediment are deposited into the
  reservoir by the Colorado River and its
  tributaries.

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Sediment at Hite Ferry in December 2002 - now 150
feet deep.
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All Reservoirs are Temporary

• Rindge Dam
• Built in 1924, this 100 foot high dam took only
  13 years to silt in completely.

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Matilija Dam, Ventura River CA
200 Feet High
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Built in 1948, it filled with silt within 30
years of construction.
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Water topping the dam in 2000
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1987- this area of Lake Powell was 200 feet deep
2001- it became a 200 foot deep sloping delta.
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• Floyd Dominy the driving force behind Glen
  Canyon Dam
• The Napkin on how to move water and sediment
  around Glen Canyon Dam

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Increased Use of Colorado River Water

• Southern Californias population is expected to
  grow by 6 million people by 2025.
• Las Vegas is growing at 6,000 people per month.
• Phoenix is growing at historic rates

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• The 4 states that comprise the Upper Colorado
  River Basin plan to develop their water over the
  next 25 years

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• Lake Mead is 45 full and dropping.

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• Global Warming

• The temperature of the earth is rising -
• But it is the increase in the rate of the
  temperature rise that has everyone very concerned.

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2007
1.53
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Colorado River BasinTemperature Change
5.3 C
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Colorado River BasinClimate Change Research
C. Milly, Nature, 2005
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Global Warming

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
  (IPCC) predicts that the average temperature of
  the earth will rise at least 4 degrees by
  mid-century and possibly even 10 degrees by the
  end of the century
• Temperatures will rise even if greenhouse
  emissions are curtailed.

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Global Warming in the West

• Global warming is not a future phenomena
• Its effects are noticed now and they are
  becoming overwhelming
• Many of the effects will be intensified in the
  American West.

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Global Warming in the West

• More heat. Temperature increases in the West are
  likely to be even greater than the projected 4
  to 10F worldwide increase by the end of the 21st
  Century.
• The heating is likely to be
• Greater in the winter than in the summer
• Greater at higher elevations than in lowlands
• with significant implications for snow packs and
  water availability

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Global Warming in the West

• More evaporation and dryness
• Higher temperatures would increase evaporation
  from reservoirs
• Increase soil dryness and increase the needs of
  crops for supplemental water

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Global Warming in the West

• Rainfall fill be more intense with greater time
  in between events
• 1. Significant increase in droughts
• 2. Increase in wildfires
• 3. Increase in flooding
• 4. Decrease in water quality
• 5. Increase in sedimentation rates

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Colorado River Snow Pack

• 75 of the Colorado River basin water comes from
  snow pack.
• Storage systems are designed to capture as much
  of the runoff water as possible

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Decreased Snowpack

• Some Canadian Models predicts that there will be
  little or no snow pack in the Canadian Rockies by
  the year 2060

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Decrease in Colorado River Runoff

• Dettinger and Stewarts (2005)
• An increase in temperature of 2 degrees will
  decrease flow into Lake Powell by 23.
• And an increase in temperature of 4 degrees will
  decrease in flow to 41 less.
• Hadley Model (2005)
• 20-30 decline in runoff into the Colorado River.

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Current Effects of Global Warming in the Colorado
River Basin

• Increased Temperatures In the upper Colorado
  River basin, 2000-2005 was 2.1F hotter than the
  historic average.

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Decreased Snow pack

• Reduced Snow pack
• Government snow pack-measurement records going
  back to 1981 indicate that snow pack levels have
  been below average for 12 of 16 years in the
  Colorado River basin

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Will Lake Powell Empty?

• The Bureau of Reclamation does not model global
  warming.
• Using the USBR CRSS output model
• Preserving Equalization Rules
• Neglecting UB development
• Assuming a 10 decrease in flow to global warming
• Lake Powell is empty 15 of the time.
• It is 40 full about sixty percent of the time.

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Scripps Study

• Scientists, working at the Scripps Institution of
  Oceanography in San Diego, said the West's 2
  largest storage reservoirs faces from a
  combination of human-induced climate change,
  growing populations and natural forces like
  climate change and evaporation.

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Scripps Study

• A couple of critical conclusions that they draw
• 10 chance that Powell and Mead will be below
  live storage by 2013
• 50 chance that Powell and Mead will be below
  live storage by 2023
• 50 chance that Powell and Mead will be below
  minimum power pool elevations by 2017

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Scripps Study

• Some conclusions reached based on conservative
  assumptions
• Upper Basin water use remains at 4 maf/yr
• In reality the Upper Basin wants to increase
  consumption
• Maintains average annual river flow of 15 maf
• This masks the reality of flows 8.24 in water
  year 2007 which moves their timeline forward
• Assumes that soil moisture and evaporation
  returns to the river basin.
• In reality evaporation moves out of the system at
  least 50 of the time.

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As a result of global warming and increased use,
Lake Powell is 50 full, and will never refill,
but instead remain nearer dead-pool level.
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End of Lake Powell

• Lake Powell is caught between a very thirsty and
  growing lower basin.
• As well as the upper basin deeply affected by
  global warming and increased use

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Glen Canyon Institute

• Founded in 1995
• Began Scientific Studies
• Published results in 1999
• Advocates
• The restoration of Glen Canyon
• An efficient water delivery system for the West
• Advocates re-designation of GCNRA to Glen Canyon
  National Park

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Tree-Ring Data Reveal Greater Variations in
Colorado RiverFlows Than Previously Assumed
Extended Droughts Are Recurrent, May Become More
Severe Because of Higher Temps

• The committee called for a collaborative,
  action-oriented comprehensive basin wide study of
  urban water practices and pressing issues in
  water supply and demand.

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• We need bright creative and innovative minds to
  solve the problems that face Western water
• We must not be afraid of change
• Water needs change, water supply changes - then
  so must water laws change

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• Become educated
• Acknowledge global warming
• Work with communities to prepare and adapt

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• Be sensitive to animal, plant, aquatic life
• They cant adapt fast enough
• Many species will need our help to survive
• Animals have water rights also

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• Adopt better water conservation
• Create a water system that makes global warming
  sense
• Do two large reservoirs in the Mojave Desert make
  sense? Lake Powell is going away
• Rely on local water sources
• Use energy conservation
• Micro-Power
• Use less energy

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• We should not cling to old ideas if they dont
  make sense
• Look to the value of free flowing rivers
• We should try to restore segments of the river
  when possible
• We can have growth and environmental protection
  we need both

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Music Temple Bar
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West Canyon Creek
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Petroglyphs in Smith Fork Canyon
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Labyrinth Canyon
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Dungeon Canyon
Americas Lost Jewel
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Escalante River Confluence
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1958
1969
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Cathedral in the Desert
Before After
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Hidden Passage
Before After
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Labyrinth Canyon
Before After
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Mystery Canyon
Before After
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Gregory Butte
Before After
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LaGorce Arch
Before After