How Do We Protect the West’s Water?

A new report from the Western Resource Advocates and Environmental Defense Fund asserts that a national climate and clean energy policy is necessary to sustainably maintain the West’s water—its ‘lifeline’—for future generations.

 Climate change threatens water resources across the West, as the region is projected to get even hotter and drier with increased greenhouse gas emissions and increases in global temperature.  A future of prolonged drought and declining water supplies will impact cities, agriculture, and the growing outdoor recreation industry. The report also highlights that thermoelectric power generation in the West uses more water—292 million gallons a day—than Denver, Phoenix, and Albuquerque combined; thus declining water supplies could also potentially impact power generation. Oil and gas extraction in the West consumes even larger quantities of water—500 million gallons a day in 2005, projected to increase to 700 million gallons a day in 2030.  This estimate does not include oil shale and tar sand extraction, which requires even more water.

A national clean energy and climate policy can protect the West’s water resources in two ways. First, by turning to renewable energy sources, we will decrease greenhouse gas emissions, hopefully reducing the degree of future drying.  Second, switching to renewable energy sources like wind and solar will also free up water supplies that were previously used for fossil fuel extraction and thermoelectric power generation. These water savings can then be used to meet future water demands.