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Multi purpose schemes- The River Colorado

Why was it dammed? How has it affected the lives of the local people?. Multi purpose schemes- The River Colorado. Where is the River Colorado?. Now using the atlas- complete your map following the instructions on the side. Why was the river dammed?.

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Multi purpose schemes- The River Colorado

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  1. Why was it dammed? How has it affected the lives of the local people? Multi purpose schemes- The River Colorado

  2. Where is the River Colorado? Now using the atlas- complete your map following the instructions on the side

  3. Why was the river dammed? • Much of the area the river runs through is desert and area twice as big as the UK • Early settlers dammed the river to provide water to local cities and towns- much of this comes from the snowmelt in the Rocky Mountains • It also regulated the flow of the river to ensure a constant supply of water to cities such as Las Vegas and Phoenix • 25 million people in the SW rely on this supply

  4. The Hoover Dam In Boulder Canyon Lake Mead and Lake Powell are two largest man made lakes in the USA

  5. What are the effects of the dam? • Using the sheet you have be given colour in the bubbles to show the effects of the dam in the following categories • Social • Economic • Environmental • Political

  6. What other effects are there? • 400,000 ha of land is irrigated for farming (most of it in California’s Imperial Valley) • Lake Mead and Lake Powell are major tourist centres • Lake Powell offers sailing, power boating, water skiing and fishing and attracts over 2 million visitors a year The photo above was taken on July 26th 2007, 7th year of drought, lake level dropped more than 100 ft- lowest level since the late 1960’s.

  7. Impacts in Las Vegas Major tourist destination- over 37 million visitors a year Much of the water is lavish and wasteful- lawns, parks, golf courses and swimming pools are seen as essential and can only be maintained by irrigation Water is becoming increasingly scarce 90% of water from Lake Mead • Annual rainfall of 50mm

  8. So what are the solutions for Las Vegas? • ‘Grass for Cash’- the city pays householders $1 for every square foot of lawn they remove • They hope they will replace them with Cacti and other desert plants • Pumping water from aquifers (permeable rocks underground) or oases- but what are the issues with this?

  9. Aquifers in the Mojave Desert • This is north of Las Vegas • The oases in the desert such as Ash Meadows are rich in wildlife- 239 species of bird, 27 mammals, 20 reptiles, 5 amphibians and 7 fish • 25 of which are nowhere else in the world • These are protected as national wildlife refuges

  10. The potential effects • The Las Vegas Water Authority wants to pump around 2 million cubic metres of groundwater each year from the aquifer • It will lower the water table • Springs will dry up • The unique environment will be destroyed

  11. Some questions… • How will Las Vegas meet the demands of its growing population and tourism industry? • How important is the natural environment compared to urban lifestyles and jobs?

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