Professional Documents
Culture Documents
GEOACTIVE - Large Scale River Basin MGMT Colorado
GEOACTIVE - Large Scale River Basin MGMT Colorado
246
Online
UPPER BASIN
San Jua
nR
.
LOWER BASIN
.
en R
Gre
COLORADO
L. Powell
L. Mead
Las Vegas
an
Oce
high precipitation
Denver
Blue Mesa
dam
ific
Co
UTAH
oR
ad
lor
ain
Flaming Gorge
dam
unt
State boundary
Reservoir
Dam
Non-permanent river
Mo
Key
Pac
Multi-purpose rivers
ky
Flaming Gorge
reservoir
NEVADA
WYOMING
IDAHO
Roc
by Hilary Edge
Gulf of
California
MEXICO
km
250
Series 12 Summer issue Unit 246 Large-scale River Basin Development: the Colorado 2001 Nelson Thornes Ltd
This page may be photocopied for use within the purchasing institution only.
GeoActive Online
Page 1 of 4
F M A M J
A S O N D
920
1940
1960
1980
GeoActive Online
Page 2 of 4
COLORADO RIVER
Length:
2,300 km
5 km3 (1917)
21 km3 (1977)
Average discharge:
503 m3/sec
Sediment load:
380,000 tonnes/day
0.3 maf
2.8 maf
4.4 maf
1.5 maf
Key
1 Coachella Canal
2 All-American Canal
Aqueduct
Irrigated areas
Los Angeles
Co
lo
rad
Pacific
Ocean
oR
Las
Vegas
Aq
ue
du
ct
San
Diego
Imperial
Valley
(largest irrigated
area in USA)
oR
rad
lo
Co
100 km
Denver
Big Thompson scheme
L. Powell
L. Mead
L. Havasu
1
2
Phoenix
Imperial
dam
Mexicale
Valley
Tucson
MEXICO
Series 12 Summer issue Unit 246 Large-scale River Basin Development: the Colorado 2001 Nelson Thornes Ltd
This page may be photocopied for use within the purchasing institution only.
Thousands of animals
drowned, and habitats lost,
in filling of Lake Mead.
Beaches washed away in
the Grand Canyon due to
varying flow of water.
Huge amounts of
water and HEP
used to support
Las Vegas.
ad
lor
Co
Denver
San Ju
an
Parker
Gulf
of
California
MEXICO
Fertile Mexicali valley receives
salty water for irrigation.
Glen Canyon
Imperial
Phoenix
San Diego Gila
Yuma
Tucson
ean
ic Oc
Pacif
Flaming
Gorge
Gr
ee
200 km
Control of flooding
A very effective method of
controlling flooding in the lower
basin is to dam excess in the upper
basin and release it gradually into
the river so that bankfull capacity
is not exceeded. Figure 2 shows
Series 12 Summer issue Unit 246 Large-scale River Basin Development: the Colorado 2001 Nelson Thornes Ltd
This page may be photocopied for use within the purchasing institution only.
Environmental protest
Environmental pressure groups
have always been powerful in the
USA. One group, the Sierra Club,
would even like to see all the dams
demolished to return the
Colorado to its natural state.
Although it reduces the
production of HEP, the flow of
water from Glen Canyon dam is
not now being allowed to
fluctuate so much because in the
past there has been much damage
to the river banks. Before any new
development is allowed, an
Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) is required by the National
Environment Policy Act. These
changes at Glen Canyon received
a full EIS in 1993.
Environmentalists believe that the
wilderness element of the
American landscape is worth
preserving.
The future
The states bordering the Colorado
must work together if they are to
be effective. Water consumption
must either be reduced or people
must be forced to conserve water,
eg through tax incentives.
GeoActive Online
Page 3 of 4
Activities
1 On Figure 6 name the
following:
Rivers: Colorado, Green, San
Juan, Little Colorado, Gila.
Cities: Los Angeles, San Diego,
Phoenix, Tucson, Denver, Las
Vegas, Yuma.
US states: Wyoming, Nevada,
New Mexico, California,
Arizona, Utah, Colorado.
Dams: Glen Canyon, Hoover,
Davis. Draw on and name the
lakes which formed behind
them.
Other features: Pacific Ocean,
Rocky Mountains, Mexico, Gulf
of California.
N
0
km
200
21.0
Colorado
5.0
New Mexico
1.5
Utah
2.3
Arizona
3.7
Wyoming
2.6
GeoActive Online
Page 4 of 4
10 Role-play
Take the part of one of the
following, and argue how you
believe the Colorado should be
managed in the future:
Sierra Club conservationist
USBR official
Farmer in Imperial Valley,
California
Casino owner in Las Vegas
Grand Canyon National Park
Official
Cocopah Indian, Yuma
High-tech industrialist, Phoenix
Migrant from Michigan now living
in Phoenix
Whitewater rafter in the Grand
Canyon
Politician from San Diego,
California.
Series 12 Summer issue Unit 246 Large-scale River Basin Development: the Colorado 2001 Nelson Thornes Ltd
This page may be photocopied for use within the purchasing institution only.