Arizona opinion: Want to fix Arizona's water issues? Start with our heat

From a young age, I've heard plenty of talk in school about saving water. But it was only as I got older that I started to really understand Arizona’s drought and realize how important the issue was. I learned more about practices for surviving through drought like rainwater harvesting and underground water storage through experts from the Salt River Project and the Central Arizona Project. But these solutions are just temporary fixes for a larger problem.

The thing to understand about drought is that it is accelerated by rising temperatures, although some regions face the opposite problem causing hurricanes. Both happen for the same reason. This is because the hotter it is, the more water in the region evaporates from lakes and rivers. That evaporated water then condenses into clouds which follow storm tracks, meaning water is being lost in regions like the Southwest resulting in drought, and states like Louisiana and Florida are instead facing harsher floods and storms.

How can we address the root causes of Arizona’s low water supply?

Take for example the Colorado River, which is one of the largest sources of water for Arizona. It helps fuel nearby cities like Los Angeles, Denver and Las Vegas. The Colorado River is critical to the southwest United States and generates "billions of dollars a year in agricultural and economic benefits" according to the Department of the Interior.

Unfortunately, however, the Colorado River's water supply is expected to drop by at least 20% by 2050 with potential losses to be less than half the water remaining by 2100 if we don't make changes to protect it.

Due to this downward trend, organizations like SRP and CAP are planning for the future by storing water underground and looking to other regions for help with water supply sources. While these strategies help to make sure Arizonians are taken care of for the time being, they do not fix the root problem behind the depletion of the Colorado River, which is Arizona's intensifying heat. Because of this, the best course of action right now is to address both the short-term consequences of the drought, through initiatives to store and save water, as well as addressing the long-term problems, meaning investing in systems that benefit the environment and help to conserve the Colorado River.

How are states working to save water?

The good news is, our governments are waking up to this. Recently, Arizona, California and Nevada made it a goal to save 3.2 million acre-feet from the Colorado River. The states acknowledge that this plan serves only to "provide additional time to develop a longer-term approach involving actions to achieve reductions in use," meaning solutions that combat the core environmental problems behind the depleting Colorado River are still needed for the long-term security of our water supply.

For example, in April SRP announced they were collaborating with NextEra Energy to take on a large-scale solar power project with the goal of producing 3,000 megawatts of solar power from 2029 to 2034, doubling their current energy storage. This trend is very hopeful for us, and we should continue to support initiatives like this that help us survive and combat the water crisis.

As citizens of Arizona, it is our responsibility to keep our communities safe and prosperous. That means protecting our water supply, which is becoming weakened due to the rising heat. This means becoming more informed about the state of our environment, supporting initiatives in our communities, and urging local representatives and companies to choose sustainable policies that benefit the people of Arizona. The most important thing is remembering that any threat to our water supply is a threat to our livelihood.