Saving Las Vegas

Credit: U.S. Geological Survey
Department of the Interior/USGS
U.S. Geological Survey/photo by Alicia Burtner

Las Vegas has been in the middle of a drought for 14 years, and its running out of water. Las Vegas gets 90% of its water from Lake Mead which was created by the Hoover Dam in 1936. Lake Mead is now only half full, and Las Vegas has experienced a population explosion over the past 10 years, growing from 400,000 to 2 million. A climate scientist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Tim Barnett, predicts that Lake Mead may provide no water to Las Vegas by 2036. "The situation is as bad as you can imagine," said Barnett.

In terms of a solution, no long term option has been enacted. Las Vegas attempted to build a $15.5 billion pipeline to bring groundwater in an aquifer from 260 miles away in rural Nevada. However, environmentalists sued the city over the plan over how the pipeline would affect endangered species. A judge then refused the city's pipeline plan. Las Vegas has reached out to nearby California for help in dealing with its water shortage. However, California has so far refused as the entire state is dealing with its own "severe drought" that could last many years. Lake Mead is fueled by the Colorado River, and Las Vegas has looked into taking water from other parts of the river. However, the entire river - not just Lake Mead - is drying up. Recently, scientists released a "pulse flow" of water on the Colorado River near the United States-Mexico border, causing water from the river to reach the Gulf of California for the first time since 1998.

The extravagance that is Las Vegas lends itself to wasting water. Las Vegas uses 219 gallons of water per person per day, while other cities use much less (San Francisco uses 49 gallons per person per day). Some water conservations efforts have been put in place though. For example, hotels and resorts are removing grass and plants that require a lot of water. Some people are even removing their lawns to cut down on water consumption.