Get Used to Drought in Western United States

Report Urges Bold Water Conservation Measures

Climate change will make drought the norm in the western United States, and it will take immediate conservation and efficiency efforts to ensure stable water supplies for people and farms in years to come, according to a new report from the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

While parts of the West are already experiencing record heat and dry weather, such conditions are likely to become typical for much of the region as global warming advances, states the report, "In Hot Water: Water Management Strategies to Weather the Effects of Global Warming." Unless officials and residents start making changes now to reduce water consumption and improve conservation, keeping the taps and irrigation systems flowing in the future will require even more drastic action, the report warns.

"During the last century, long-range forecasts of population growth and water demands in the West have often been underestimated," writes Patricia Mulroy, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority in the report's Foreword. "Add to this fact the reality that stable and reliable water supplies in the West are, for the most part, already allocated. In this age of scarce water supplies, the prospect of climate change should serve as a catalyst for paradigm shifts in the way we manage water. Long-term climate change is adding even more uncertainty to the already difficult task of water resource planning and management."

The NRDC report urges decision-makers in the West to assess how vulnerable the region's water systems are to climate change, implement conservation and regional water management strategies that take into account global warming, take action to reduce future greenhouse gas emissions and educate the public about climate change and the need for better water management.

Such immediate steps are needed now to prepare for the possibility that average temperatures could increase by as much as 11.5 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of this century, the report's authors say.