This summer, when the temperature hit 110 degrees Fahrenheit or above in Phoenix for 31 straight days, many were fretting about the Southwest’s prospects in the age of climate change. A writer for The Atlantic asked, “When Will the Southwest Become Unlivable?” Bloomberg wondered, “How Long Can We Keep Living in Hotboxes Like Phoenix?”
In just a few years, water that’s flushed down toilets and drains in Phoenix may eventually flow through taps for people to drink.
Nazario Prieto with Phoenix Water Services claims it’s responsible and the way to go to preserve water.
“It’s a sustainable resource, and it keeps coming to us,” he explained.
The project will start at the Cave Creek Water Reclamation Plant near Cave Creek and Deer Valley roads.
Phoenix experienced its hottest summer on record with an average temperature of 97 degrees — more than 3 degrees warmer than the 30-year average between 1991 and 2020, per an analysis of NOAA data.
A tiny, shuttered wastewater treatment facility in north Phoenix that the City Council voted to bring back online Wednesday will be the city’s first to use advanced water purification technology that officials hope to make widespread within a decade.
The Southwest monsoon has wrapped up, and it featured a weird split of record dry conditions in parts of Arizona and soaking rain, including from the remnants of a former hurricane in California, Nevada and other states.
Phoenix sizzled through its 31st consecutive day of at least 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius) and other parts of the country grappled Sunday with record temperatures after a week that saw significant portions of the U.S. population subject to extreme heat.
The National Weather Service said Phoenix climbed to a high of 111 F (43.8 Celsius) before the day was through.
Few homes in Phoenix and its surrounding communities have the thick grass and carefully manicured shrubs and trees of lawns found in other parts of the US.
Desert residents are uniquely poised to recognize the environmental harms associated with conventional lawns and lean into more climate-friendly landscaping. Within the past decade, Phoenicians have become a catalyst for the growing anti-lawn movement.
The city of Phoenix this week outlined how it will voluntarily contribute water to a regional plan to shore up the country’s largest reservoir that delivers Colorado River water to three states and Mexico.
The river cannot provide seven Western states the water they were promised a century ago because of less snow, warmer temperatures and water lost to evaporation. Water managers repeatedly have had to pivot to develop plans to sustain it for the long-term.
Phoenix, the nation’s fifth-largest city, is among entities in the river’s lower basin that are part of the “500+ Plan” meant to delay further mandatory shortages. All pieces of the plan haven’t been finalized, but farmers and Native American tribes are expected to play a big role.
The Colorado River serves more than 40 million people in Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, California, Wyoming, Utah and Mexico. Lake Mead and Lake Powell store the water and are used to gauge the river’s health.
Water is a precious resource in a desert city like Phoenix. Community members understand the importance of water conservation to keep the city thriving. Unlike other areas in the southwest, Phoenix is not in a water shortage. While the drought is serious, Phoenix is prepared.
Over 20 years into the current drought, Phoenix continues to have access to several water supplies, including Salt, Verde, and Colorado River, groundwater reserves, and reclaimed wastewater for crops and sustainable activities. Investments in infrastructure, strategic and innovative planning on behalf of city leaders, and long-standing water conservation programs are just some of the reasons why water supplies in Phoenix will remain in good shape.
For the second time in two years, federal officials are warning that Lake Mead could drop in five to six years to levels low enough to possibly warrant major Central Arizona Project water cutbacks to Tucson and Phoenix.
These warnings were ratcheted up significantly compared to forecasts made earlier this year. That’s due to the severely hot and dry weather that struck most of the West during the summer, including the hottest two months on record in Tucson and Phoenix in August and July, respectively.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
