Tucson, Arizona Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Water=== [[File:Snowy Catalinas.jpg|thumb|right|The nearby Santa Catalina Mountains, covered in snow]] Less than 100 years ago, the [[Santa Cruz River (Arizona)|Santa Cruz River]] flowed nearly year-round through Tucson. This supply of water has slowly disappeared, causing Tucson to seek alternative sources. In 1881, water was pumped from a well on the banks of the Santa Cruz River and flowed by gravity through pipes into the distribution system.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://m.tucsonaz.gov/water/about-us|title=About Tucson Water|website=M.tucsonaz.gov|access-date=December 13, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140329083415/http://m.tucsonaz.gov/water/about-us|archive-date=March 29, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> Tucson currently draws water from two main sources: [[Central Arizona Project]] (CAP) water and [[groundwater]]. In 1992, Tucson Water delivered CAP water to some customers that was unacceptable due to discoloration, bad odor and flavor, as well as problems it caused with some customers' plumbing and appliances. Tucson's city water currently consists of CAP water mixed with groundwater. In an effort to conserve water, Tucson is recharging groundwater supplies by running part of its share of CAP water into various open portions of local rivers to seep into their aquifer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ci.tucson.az.us/water/heritage.htm |title=Tucson Water—Tucson Water's Heritage |website=www.ci.tucson.az.us |access-date=January 17, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060703194522/http://www.ci.tucson.az.us/water/heritage.htm |archive-date=July 3, 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Additional study is scheduled to determine how much water is lost through evaporation from the open areas, especially during the summer. The City of Tucson provides [[reclaimed water]] to its inhabitants, but it is only used for "applications such as irrigation, dust control, and industrial uses".<ref name="City of Tucson-2012">{{cite web | title = Reclaimed Water | publisher = City of Tucson | year = 2012 | url = http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/water/reclaimed | access-date = March 22, 2012 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120505110418/http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/water/reclaimed | archive-date = May 5, 2012 | df = mdy-all }}</ref> These resources have been in place for more than 27 years, and deliver to over 900 locations.<ref name="City of Tucson-2012"/> To prevent further loss of groundwater, Tucson has been involved in water conservation and groundwater preservation efforts, shifting away from its reliance on a series of Tucson area wells in favor of conservation, consumption-based pricing for residential and commercial water use, and new wells in the more sustainable Avra Valley aquifer, northwest of the city. An allocation from the [[Central Arizona Project Aqueduct]] (CAP), which passes more than {{convert|300|mi|-1|abbr=on}} across the desert from the [[Colorado River]], has been incorporated into the city's water supply, annually providing over 20 million gallons of "recharged" water which is pumped into the ground to replenish water pumped out.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/water/clearwater_faqs |title=Clearwater Frequently Asked Questions | The Official Website for the City of Tucson, Arizona |publisher=Cms3.tucsonaz.gov |access-date=October 27, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111105141442/http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/water/clearwater_faqs |archive-date=November 5, 2011}}</ref> Since 2001, CAP water has allowed the city to remove or turn off over 80 wells.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/files/water/docs/coloradoriver.pdf |title=Tucson Water's Long Range Water Resource Planning |publisher=City of Tucson |access-date=January 22, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516095331/http://cms3.tucsonaz.gov/files/water/docs/coloradoriver.pdf |archive-date=May 16, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> ==== Water harvesting ==== The city of Tucson, Arizona, in an attempt to combat climate change, is providing financial incentives for residents to harvest their rainwater. Tucson's water supply, like many Western cities, is drawn from two main sources: surface water that is pumped more than 300 miles from the Colorado River and groundwater.<ref name="Malloy-2020">{{Cite web|last=Malloy|first=Chris|date=November 23, 2020|title=A Desert City Tries to Save Itself With Rain|website=[[Bloomberg News]]|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-23/harvesting-rainwater-in-a-desert-city}}</ref> The pump expends a significant amount of energy and the Colorado River is diminishing as a result of climate change and overuse. In 2012, the city began a program that rebates residents as much as $2,000 for the purchase of water harvesting systems. "Water harvesting" refers to rainwater, which is gathered from building surfaces, and stormwater'','' which collects nonpotable storm runoff from streets and earth. The program is financed by a water bill fee of 10 cents per 748 gallons of city water used. In the first few years, the rebate program was not conserving water as efficiently as they anticipated. But in fiscal year 2018 to 2019, the rebate program saved 52.1 million gallons of water.<ref name="Malloy-2020" /> That is enough water to meet the annual usage of 160 households.<ref name="Malloy-2020" /> The city has been trying to grow the approximately 250 people who obtain active rebates each year by introducing a loan program to bring rebates within reach of lower-income residents. The city government has an ambitious goal to be carbon neutral by 2030 and is integrating changes that will help change local resident's conventional thinking and practices. On May 1, 2020, Tucson began charging residents and businesses within city limits a monthly Green Stormwater Infrastructure fee (13 cents per 748 gallons of city water used), which is projected to raise some $3 million a year for public stormwater capture installations and other projects.<ref name="Malloy-2020" /> But this comes at a time when unemployment is rising and the number of low income residents facing unaffordable bills between 2010 and 2018 doubled to 46% as the average bill increased by 119% in Tucson.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Lakhani|first=Nina|date=June 23, 2020|title=Revealed: millions of Americans can't afford water as bills rise 80% in a decade|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/23/millions-of-americans-cant-afford-water-bills-rise|access-date=December 1, 2020|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Additionally, as part of the citywide climate resiliency effort, Mayor Regina Romero recently announced the planting of a million trees over the next decade.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Sayers|first=Justin|title=For Mayor Romero, 1 million planted trees in city admittedly a 'big effort'|url=https://tucson.com/news/local/for-mayor-romero-1-million-planted-trees-in-city-admittedly-a-big-effort/article_81c4c718-ef9c-5b65-aae2-d6bf979f3c1d.html|access-date=December 1, 2020|website=Arizona Daily Star|date=February 15, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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