重要的想法:2016年研究报告

bet365亚洲官网爱达荷州水资源研究所, or IWRRI, is helping ensure the towns on the prairie maintain their water access as they grow. IWRRI researchers recently completed an in-depth study of current water demand and potential future development in the area, providing vital data so municipal water providers can secure the water rights they need.

未来之水

大约370平方英里的斯波坎山谷拉斯德拉姆草原含水层 spans Idaho and Washington, with water flowing east to west and affecting the Spokane River. Both states rely on this shared source for drinking water, irrigation, industrial uses and more.

The states are dedicated to working together, but sometimes have competing interests.

“There has been tension over the years over who’s drawing what where, and whether it’s going to effect the eventual health of the Spokane River,” 马克所罗门IWRRI临时主任.

2014年3月, a group of municipal water providers on the Idaho side asked IWRRI for help: The state of Washington was moving toward adopting flow rules for the Spokane River, and the cities and water districts wanted to make sure it wouldn’t hurt their ability to provide water in the future.

IWRRI began to gather data to support the 28 providers as they applied for Reasonably Anticipated Future Need water rights from the Idaho Water Resource Board.

如果他们获得了权利, the providers will be able to protect their water access “should it ever come to competition instead of cooperation between the states,所罗门说.

“在西方, where water is scarcer than in the temperate East, the right to water goes to the first person to put it to use,他解释道. “你拥有的水权越高, the more claim you have to use that water in times of scarcity.”

未来的数据

Solomon’s research estimated the area’s water demand for the next 30 years by examining current demand and building population and economic projections. The Rathdrum Prairie area is not growing as rapidly as it did in the 1980s, 但所罗门的数据仍然显示出稳定的增长.4 -1.人口年增长8%.

迈克·加兰特，区域经理北库特奈供水和下水道区, says he’s pleased with the study’s usefulness not only for securing water rights, 同时也用于规划.

“I think the IWRRI tool does a pretty good job of, first of all, identifying areas of city impact. It does a good job of identifying service areas of various water providers,” Galante says. “一般说来, it gives a look to the future of what our map of our area’s going to look like as growth continues.”

研究中最有趣的结果, 所罗门说, 现在才知道吗, the areas with the densest population on the prairie correlate to the areas that use the least water per person — and the least water during the hottest days of summer, which are critical for the aquifer and the Spokane River.

This information could help land-use planners in the region encourage water-wise growth, further preserving the area’s access to the aquifer.

“If water conservation becomes an issue in continued development of the region, then certainly planning that decreases the amount of irrigated landscape and promotes quality of living through a denser urban core can provide a basis for economic growth without imperiling the aquifer or the Spokane River,所罗门说.

扩大全州

Since the successful completion of the Rathdrum Prairie project, Solomon says he has heard from other water districts, 特别是在宝藏谷, who also want to work with IWRRI to prepare for future water needs.

Galante says he would recommend that other communities work with the trustworthy and straightforward IWRRI team.

“他们会问正确的问题, and they convey the mission of the project and the outcome that will happen,他说. “They’re good communicators and they follow through.”

所罗门说 projects like the Rathdrum Prairie study fit perfectly into IWRRI’s role at the university and in the state.

“IWRRI takes the knowledge of the university and applies it to real-world water resource problems, 也提供了可信任的, neutral party to negotiate tough agreements between interests that may be in conflict,所罗门说.

“The ultimate goal is to ensure that we have the water we need to support our people, our economy and our landscapes for this and future generations.”