WEBVTT 00:00:00.370 --> 00:00:02.700 Water is a crucial building block for life, 00:00:02.700 --> 00:00:05.320 for farming, for food, and for showers. 00:00:05.892 --> 00:00:07.832 Often water comes from far away. 00:00:07.832 --> 00:00:10.434 For example, over half of Southern California's water 00:00:10.434 --> 00:00:12.276 is pumped out of the Colorado River. 00:00:12.406 --> 00:00:15.115 It is then transported up and over a mountain range 00:00:15.115 --> 00:00:17.429 to be used in cities and farms. 00:00:17.809 --> 00:00:19.997 But as rainfall and temperatures change, 00:00:19.997 --> 00:00:21.621 scientists are seeing a megadrought 00:00:21.621 --> 00:00:23.242 emerging in the American West. 00:00:23.242 --> 00:00:24.866 And much of that long-term drought 00:00:24.866 --> 00:00:26.862 is centered right over the Colorado River. 00:00:26.862 --> 00:00:29.844 Which means giant cities like L.A. and rural farms alike 00:00:29.844 --> 00:00:31.907 could see a strain on their water supply. 00:00:32.047 --> 00:00:34.680 In this episode, we'll learn why this drought is so bad 00:00:34.680 --> 00:00:36.451 and find out what lessons we can learn 00:00:36.451 --> 00:00:38.466 from people who have lived in the Southwest 00:00:38.466 --> 00:00:39.854 for thousands of years. 00:00:45.384 --> 00:00:46.701 A drainage basin is an area 00:00:46.751 --> 00:00:50.248 where precipitation collects and runs into a particular body of water. 00:00:50.418 --> 00:00:51.905 The basin in the Colorado River 00:00:51.905 --> 00:00:54.281 spans seven States and two countries. 00:00:54.621 --> 00:00:56.864 40 million people count on it's water. 00:00:57.314 --> 00:00:59.004 But what happens when rivers dry up 00:00:59.004 --> 00:01:01.370 and the water you're counting on doesn't come? 00:01:01.581 --> 00:01:03.028 To understand, I first asked 00:01:03.028 --> 00:01:05.988 water and drought scientist, Brad Udall, what's going on. 00:01:06.216 --> 00:01:10.026 In 2000, a drought began that now 20 years later 00:01:10.026 --> 00:01:11.925 is the most severe drought 00:01:11.925 --> 00:01:17.240 since gauges were installed on the river in 1906 in some places. 00:01:17.748 --> 00:01:20.487 The flow is down about 20%. 00:01:20.737 --> 00:01:21.979 Drought is usually defined 00:01:21.979 --> 00:01:24.164 as a period of abnormally low rainfall 00:01:24.164 --> 00:01:25.698 leading to a shortage of water. 00:01:25.698 --> 00:01:28.261 But Brad told me that this drought is a bit different. 00:01:28.261 --> 00:01:30.266 That's because while rain is down, 00:01:30.266 --> 00:01:32.761 that doesn't fully account for the low water levels. 00:01:32.972 --> 00:01:35.262 We now actually have a new term for this: 00:01:35.262 --> 00:01:36.263 It's a hot drought. 00:01:36.263 --> 00:01:39.436 So higher temperatures dry out the earth. 00:01:39.551 --> 00:01:41.889 And what we're finding is that higher temperatures 00:01:41.889 --> 00:01:45.140 lead to greater evaporation in all its forms. 00:01:45.546 --> 00:01:49.121 And that evaporation is the cause of this decline in flow. 00:01:49.121 --> 00:01:51.503 In other words, as temperatures increase over time, 00:01:51.503 --> 00:01:54.077 the process of evaporation takes more water away 00:01:54.077 --> 00:01:56.471 from rivers, lakes, and snow-capped mountains. 00:01:57.086 --> 00:02:00.718 This helps explain why river flow in the Colorado basin is down 20% 00:02:00.718 --> 00:02:03.408 despite precipitation only being down by 5%. 00:02:04.099 --> 00:02:05.444 And droughts do end, 00:02:05.444 --> 00:02:07.253 but according to many scientists 00:02:07.253 --> 00:02:10.113 waiting for rain in this case is probably not a good idea. 00:02:10.605 --> 00:02:12.035 The term "drought" implies 00:02:12.035 --> 00:02:14.800 some kind of return to normal at some point. 00:02:14.900 --> 00:02:16.703 Drought implies temporary, 00:02:17.145 --> 00:02:19.675 and most scientists nowadays have started talking 00:02:19.675 --> 00:02:22.549 about the aridification of the West, 00:02:22.651 --> 00:02:26.638 meaning a more permanent move to a dry state. 00:02:28.493 --> 00:02:33.893 (car engine roaring) 00:02:34.795 --> 00:02:36.843 Few people understand the threat of drought 00:02:36.843 --> 00:02:38.262 better than Nancy Caywood. 00:02:38.262 --> 00:02:40.496 She's a fifth generation farmer in Pinal County 00:02:40.496 --> 00:02:42.739 where water either comes from the Colorado River 00:02:42.739 --> 00:02:44.770 through the Central Arizona Project canals 00:02:44.770 --> 00:02:47.379 or from other rivers and canals in the Colorado basin. 00:02:47.437 --> 00:02:48.837 This represents liquid gold. 00:02:48.837 --> 00:02:50.665 This is our water supply right here. 00:02:50.665 --> 00:02:52.716 We take it out, there's a gate right there, 00:02:52.716 --> 00:02:54.574 and it goes down a little lateral canal 00:02:54.574 --> 00:02:56.101 that takes it right to our farm. 00:02:56.101 --> 00:02:57.468 I'm gonna open up this gate, 00:02:57.468 --> 00:02:58.839 we have the gate open, 00:02:59.069 --> 00:03:01.861 we'll open four of them, allow the water to flow in. 00:03:04.221 --> 00:03:07.007 We have about 135 acres of alfalfa. 00:03:07.499 --> 00:03:09.840 This is an example of flood irrigation, 00:03:09.840 --> 00:03:12.263 one of the oldest and most common irrigation methods 00:03:12.263 --> 00:03:14.110 which distributes water over the soil 00:03:14.110 --> 00:03:16.650 by allowing it to flow downhill with gravity. 00:03:16.941 --> 00:03:19.161 There's a beautiful simplicity to it, 00:03:19.161 --> 00:03:22.051 but it's actually the least efficient way to irrigate 00:03:22.051 --> 00:03:24.048 as much of the water either evaporates away 00:03:24.048 --> 00:03:26.805 or seeps into the soil out of reach of the plants' roots. 00:03:27.118 --> 00:03:29.986 And on top of that, alfalfa is a very thirsty crop, 00:03:30.263 --> 00:03:33.184 which means the beef that comes from the cattle it feeds 00:03:33.184 --> 00:03:35.607 is the highest water use food commonly available. 00:03:35.607 --> 00:03:38.455 Drip and sprinkler irrigation can be much more efficient, 00:03:38.455 --> 00:03:40.440 but Nancy told us she's not been able 00:03:40.440 --> 00:03:41.853 to get the permits needed 00:03:41.853 --> 00:03:44.012 to change the irrigation style on the farm. 00:03:44.086 --> 00:03:46.483 And the Caywood alfalfa fields are in good company. 00:03:46.483 --> 00:03:48.877 60% of farmland in the Colorado basin 00:03:48.932 --> 00:03:50.415 is used to grow feed crops. 00:03:50.415 --> 00:03:53.227 Combine all that demand, and here in Pinal County 00:03:53.227 --> 00:03:55.000 is where the drought hits home. 00:03:55.427 --> 00:03:58.602 The last time the reservoir was full was in 1992. 00:03:58.772 --> 00:04:02.200 One year, we had nothing planted on this farm at all. 00:04:02.284 --> 00:04:04.136 In 2019 water in Lake Mead, 00:04:04.136 --> 00:04:06.515 the nation's largest reservoir, dropped so low 00:04:06.515 --> 00:04:08.269 it triggered the first cutbacks 00:04:08.269 --> 00:04:10.440 in water allocations ever in the basin. 00:04:10.653 --> 00:04:12.407 Pinal County farmers were the first 00:04:12.407 --> 00:04:13.800 to have their water reduced. 00:04:13.800 --> 00:04:17.315 Fields lay fallow, prepped and ready, but unplanted. 00:04:18.019 --> 00:04:19.536 This is a fallow field, 00:04:19.644 --> 00:04:22.361 and we just didn't have enough water to plant it. 00:04:22.361 --> 00:04:24.795 We have 120 acres of fallow land. 00:04:28.505 --> 00:04:31.095 Good news here is, since about 1980 00:04:31.095 --> 00:04:33.605 American water use has actually gone down. 00:04:33.605 --> 00:04:37.614 Even in growing American cities in the South West, 00:04:38.094 --> 00:04:40.793 total consumption has gone down 00:04:40.793 --> 00:04:43.624 despite pretty big increases in population. 00:04:43.624 --> 00:04:46.232 But worldwide irrigated agriculture 00:04:46.232 --> 00:04:51.108 uses upwards of 70% of water in rivers 00:04:51.347 --> 00:04:56.492 and municipalities use much, much less, 20% or less. 00:04:56.492 --> 00:04:57.583 That's partially due 00:04:57.583 --> 00:04:59.512 to household water conservation efforts, 00:04:59.512 --> 00:05:02.240 but it's mainly due to the way cities and homes use water. 00:05:02.600 --> 00:05:05.838 When you shower, wash dishes or even flush the toilet, 00:05:05.838 --> 00:05:08.754 that water is treated and returned to surface or groundwater 00:05:08.754 --> 00:05:10.451 rather than evaporating. 00:05:10.451 --> 00:05:12.553 The same goes for some industrial uses. 00:05:12.703 --> 00:05:14.783 But the largest opportunity and challenge 00:05:14.783 --> 00:05:17.303 to reduce water use is in the agricultural sector. 00:05:17.303 --> 00:05:19.084 That's because water used for farming 00:05:19.084 --> 00:05:21.057 either becomes part of the growing plants 00:05:21.057 --> 00:05:22.737 or it's lost to evaporation, 00:05:22.737 --> 00:05:25.221 meaning it doesn't return to the hydrologic cycle 00:05:25.221 --> 00:05:26.541 for a very long time. 00:05:28.239 --> 00:05:30.866 Scientists say this is the worst drought in 1200 years, 00:05:30.866 --> 00:05:32.779 but the Hopi you have lived in this area 00:05:32.779 --> 00:05:35.869 for over 2000 years and have grown food through it all. 00:05:35.947 --> 00:05:38.897 We met up with Max Taylor, a Hopi Water Resources technician 00:05:38.897 --> 00:05:41.621 to find out if lessons from one of the oldest communities 00:05:41.621 --> 00:05:44.001 in the United States can be applied to modern life 00:05:44.001 --> 00:05:45.851 in the drying Colorado basin. 00:05:46.067 --> 00:05:49.978 The Hopi's been known to use the least amount of water 00:05:50.681 --> 00:05:53.172 than people throughout the whole United States. 00:05:53.172 --> 00:05:55.794 It's just because we live in the desert, 00:05:55.794 --> 00:05:57.855 here we are more aware of how much you use. 00:05:58.406 --> 00:06:00.460 And so the use is very little. 00:06:00.860 --> 00:06:02.361 So we're down at my field. 00:06:02.361 --> 00:06:05.591 This is my blue corn, they're planted here. 00:06:05.591 --> 00:06:07.115 All of these are dry farmed. 00:06:07.115 --> 00:06:08.911 I don't do any irrigation. 00:06:09.005 --> 00:06:13.183 And the technique we use is you clear off an area. 00:06:16.658 --> 00:06:19.602 You'll dig a hole down about maybe eight to 10 inches deep, 00:06:19.720 --> 00:06:22.197 get maybe eight or ten kernels of corn 00:06:22.981 --> 00:06:24.126 and toss in there. 00:06:24.126 --> 00:06:26.439 The wet moisture that you've taken up, 00:06:26.439 --> 00:06:28.009 you push them back in, 00:06:28.450 --> 00:06:30.190 then you cover it with the dry soil. 00:06:30.190 --> 00:06:31.600 And that's dry farming. 00:06:31.600 --> 00:06:33.752 His garden is planted in a low lying area 00:06:33.752 --> 00:06:36.274 to collect the little moisture that falls each year. 00:06:36.274 --> 00:06:38.654 And his crops are extremely adapted to the region. 00:06:38.654 --> 00:06:41.374 They're planted far apart to avoid competition for water, 00:06:41.374 --> 00:06:44.163 and they grow very deep roots that tap into groundwater. 00:06:44.209 --> 00:06:46.664 Right now we're in September. 00:06:46.870 --> 00:06:49.710 You can still feel a little bit of moisture in the ground, 00:06:49.710 --> 00:06:50.850 see that? 00:06:52.053 --> 00:06:56.053 Not much, but just enough that it's still keeping them going. 00:06:56.140 --> 00:06:58.866 Amazingly Max uses seeds for his own farming consumption 00:06:58.866 --> 00:07:01.239 that produces crops in what seems like dust 00:07:01.239 --> 00:07:02.668 with no irrigation. 00:07:02.968 --> 00:07:04.908 He's never watered this field. 00:07:06.529 --> 00:07:09.922 We have seeds that are being passed on from generation to generation. 00:07:09.922 --> 00:07:13.012 So they're adapted to this dry climate. 00:07:13.402 --> 00:07:16.404 The corn's been with the Hopi at least several thousand years. 00:07:17.175 --> 00:07:18.493 I think the lesson to learn 00:07:18.493 --> 00:07:20.793 is that you have to live within your environment. 00:07:20.793 --> 00:07:23.744 And I think that's how the natives have survived in these areas 00:07:23.744 --> 00:07:25.246 because they were sustainable. 00:07:25.246 --> 00:07:27.225 And we know this country. 00:07:31.017 --> 00:07:32.857 Shifting towards crops appropriate for 00:07:32.857 --> 00:07:34.462 and adapted to their environment 00:07:34.462 --> 00:07:36.903 provides a vast opportunity for water conservation. 00:07:36.993 --> 00:07:39.048 That shift can happen on farms or in cities 00:07:39.048 --> 00:07:41.716 when we choose to eat foods that need less water to grow. 00:07:41.716 --> 00:07:44.769 On paper, a shift from feed crops and cattle makes sense. 00:07:44.769 --> 00:07:46.240 But if we want to adapt 00:07:46.240 --> 00:07:48.286 to our warming climate in an equitable way, 00:07:48.286 --> 00:07:50.820 we can't write off farmers like Nancy and the families 00:07:50.820 --> 00:07:52.610 that have fed us for generations. 00:07:52.620 --> 00:07:54.472 We would like to continue farming. 00:07:54.591 --> 00:07:56.454 We don't plan on giving up this farm. 00:07:56.454 --> 00:07:58.684 We are looking into alternatives, 00:07:58.684 --> 00:08:00.486 we're looking into alternative crops, 00:08:00.493 --> 00:08:03.716 we're looking at water conservation irrigation techniques. 00:08:03.716 --> 00:08:07.442 Alfalfa takes seven to nine acre feet of water a year to grow it. 00:08:07.442 --> 00:08:10.638 Olives would take about one and a half acre feet of water. 00:08:10.638 --> 00:08:12.638 But if we were to get into, say, olives, 00:08:12.638 --> 00:08:14.454 there'd be a lot of soil preparation. 00:08:14.454 --> 00:08:16.470 So it costs us a lot money to get started. 00:08:16.470 --> 00:08:19.046 But the question is, can we come together as a country 00:08:19.046 --> 00:08:21.242 and implement techniques to reduce the strain 00:08:21.242 --> 00:08:24.017 on our water supply before there are even more shortages? 00:08:24.017 --> 00:08:25.728 We need to be ready 00:08:25.728 --> 00:08:28.366 for some really big changes coming at us 00:08:28.366 --> 00:08:31.026 that are frankly outside of our comprehension. 00:08:31.026 --> 00:08:35.496 This is how we make the best out of a bad situation 00:08:35.496 --> 00:08:37.482 and stand by those 00:08:37.482 --> 00:08:41.852 who end up facing the biggest changes and challenges. 00:08:41.863 --> 00:08:42.876 And while we focus 00:08:42.876 --> 00:08:44.889 on the American Southwest in this episode, 00:08:44.889 --> 00:08:47.476 drought does affect almost every part of the country. 00:08:47.476 --> 00:08:49.269 So practicing water conservation 00:08:49.269 --> 00:08:51.616 as a part of your daily life can help you prepare 00:08:51.616 --> 00:08:53.854 for when water supplies run low in your region. 00:08:53.854 --> 00:08:56.223 Some of the most effective things you can do today 00:08:56.223 --> 00:08:57.271 are not that hard. 00:08:57.271 --> 00:09:00.432 For example, never leave a faucet running when it's not being used, 00:09:00.435 --> 00:09:02.733 like when brushing your teeth or washing dishes. 00:09:02.733 --> 00:09:04.406 Make sure to fix leaky faucets 00:09:04.406 --> 00:09:06.791 and choose energy- and water-efficient appliances. 00:09:06.791 --> 00:09:08.357 If you want to get more involved, 00:09:08.357 --> 00:09:10.107 you can place a brick in the tank of your toilet 00:09:10.107 --> 00:09:11.964 so it uses less water for each flush, 00:09:11.964 --> 00:09:14.354 or convert your lawn to a beautiful landscape 00:09:14.354 --> 00:09:15.777 that doesn't need irrigation. 00:09:15.777 --> 00:09:18.438 Or even install a rainwater catchment system. 00:09:19.194 --> 00:09:21.421 Of course, there's another thing we can all do, 00:09:21.421 --> 00:09:24.943 and that's to fight the underlying cause of this drought, climate change. 00:09:24.943 --> 00:09:26.852 The future of this drought is unwritten, 00:09:26.852 --> 00:09:28.720 and the less warming we create, 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:30.718 the brighter our water future will be. 00:09:30.718 --> 00:09:32.735 So check out the excellent show, Hot Mess, 00:09:32.735 --> 00:09:34.585 for more ideas about what can be done. 00:09:34.585 --> 00:09:36.160 And of course, subscribe 00:09:36.160 --> 00:09:38.460 to keep up with all of our episodes of Weathered. 00:09:38.460 --> 00:09:45.034 (soft music)