The 650-mile Gila River is a low volume river that, like many other southwestern rivers, is at risk of being dammed and diverted to supply big cities like Phoenix, Tucson, and Albuquerque. New Mexico is looking for approval from the Interior Department to construct a major diversion on the Gila that will drain billions of gallons of water away from the river each year and costs $1 billion. Environmental and conservation groups are opposing the project out of fear that it will cause major strain on the natural ecosystem surrounding the river. [1]
The Gila River “pours out of the Gila National Forest, the nation’s first designated wilderness area.” [1] According to Jarrod Swackhamer, a member of Southwestern New Mexico Audubon, the Gila supports more than 200 bird species. Audubon New Mexico and the Gila Resources Information Project say that constructing a diversion will destroy a critical natural system by reducing diversity of wildlife and altering the flow of the river. A report by the Nature Conservancy states the ecosystems in the river, forest, and wetlands that surround it rely heavily on the river’s flow. Altering the flow could cause “a cascading negative effect on the aquatic riparian ecosystem.”[1]
Environmental and conservation groups have urged New Mexico’s Interstate Stream Commission, the group charged with making the decision about the diversion project, to use the federal funds for water conservation initiatives instead of damming and diverting the river. Environmental groups have advocated for improving irrigation efficiency and recycling wastewater rather than risking ecological consequences and paying the estimated $1 billion price tag for the project. Local conservation groups argue that New Mexico cannot afford to waste time or money when it comes to developing a practical and sustainable approach to water management; however, the Gila River Diversion Project is a risky option both financially and ecologically. [1]
[1] Audubon. Will New Mexico Lose Its Last Wild River? National Audubon Society. https://www.audubon.org/news/will-new-mexico-lose-its-last-wild-river
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