Glen Canyon: drought's silver lining
Lake Powell as we know it is a relic of the past. Constructed in a period which scientists are calling "unusually wet," the primary purpose of Glen Canyon Dam has been water storage since it was built. When the dam was completed, a legendary national park-caliber canyon system was flooded in anticipation of conditions like we're currently experiencing: the occasional western dry spell. Forty years later, flow records show that the dam has not once been necessary to meet legal water delivery requirements.
Regardless of water laws, Mother Nature is draining Lake Powell by herself. In the fifth year of drought, many climate experts believe we are actually returning to more normal conditions. Recent studies from University of Washington scientists predict one-third less Colorado River water in the basin by 2050 due to climate change and global warming.
Either way, the retreating reservoirs around the West likely won't refill any time soon, necessitating a shift from an expired reality that includes a full Lake Powell to a new reality with a waterless Glen Canyon. Western water policy will be drastically affected, ultimately shifting to less water storage on the main stem of the Colorado, more localized storage in the lower basin water closer to the water users and a more efficient delivery system. A more efficient system won't include Lake Powell's annual evaporative loss of nearly 1 million acre-feet.
This is what the future looks like. Page evolved from a dam-builder service camp in the 1960s into the reservoir recreation-based economy it is today. The drought has initiated another evolution process for the region surrounding Glen Canyon, and a sustainable economy is emerging based upon the returning splendor of Glen Canyon.
The retreating water in the side canyons of Lake Powell is revealing natural wonders unseen for decades. Magical places such as the Lower Escalante River, Gregory Natural Bridge and Cathedral in the Desert are emerging from the depths of the reservoir. Early in 2005, Cathedral in the Desert, a majestic grotto once called the "Jewel of Glen Canyon," will be entirely out of the water.
The good news about the drought in the West is the recovery of one of the most incredible natural treasures: Glen Canyon. Within the past five years, vegetation in some parts of the canyon has reached 20 feet tall; desert varnish covers the bathtub ring high-water mark everywhere; and sediment is being washed out of the more than 125 side canyons in the Glen.
So while boating on Lake Powell will still go on, at least for a couple more years, Mother Nature is draining Lake Powell whether we like it or not. We may get a couple of wet years in the next decade, but don't cross your fingers. (It took 10 years to fill last time it was this low in 1970.) What will we do when the occasional big runoff year's rising waters begin to flood Cathedral in the Desert once again? Will we have seen Cathedral in the Desert, Gregory Natural Bridge, Davis Gulch, Hidden Passage, Music Temple, Dungeon Canyon before they drown again, or will we have decided to protect them for our children?
Christopher Peterson is the executive director of the Glen Canyon Institute.
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