Water Resources Research Center Conference - March 28th, 2017
Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming are all facing the challenge of future water demands exceeding supplies. Pressing questions arise.
Do we have enough water to sustain agricultural demands as we face the following impositions upon our water resource?
the Colorado River water supply-demand gap increases as populations grow
depletion threatens our groundwater aquifers
What are the specific challenges faced by irrigated agriculture in these states, and what advances have been made in agricultural technologies to address these challenges?
Trapanese Engineering 2.0 has already largely addressed the water issue with its Sustainable Real Estate Development solution whereby all water used is fully purified beyond current potability standards. County ordinances need to be updated to reflect and encourage developers’ implementation of sustainable technologies which have been known for decades. Likewise, developers need to accept that the change offered by my design is to be embraced, because it will save them millions of dollars in infrastructure monies. Additionally, my overall plan assures all concerned that LEED Platinum status is easily achieved.
Modern Urban Planning has effectively espoused the sensible precepts of Permaculture. All sustainable plans incorporate the integration of residential and commercial. Additionally, the design criteria to effect the minimization of gas-driven vehicles renders my plans with a near-perfect walk score. My developments are relatively small, yet they include eminently sustainable residential, hospitality, commercial, industrial, and agricultural sectors.
Among my biggest dilemmas is in getting the citizens of Pima county (and any other county, state or country in which my solution would be implemented) to get over the "ick factor" which is the result of acknowledging that their distilled/purified drinking water comes from their showers, laundry effluent and sewage. As I stated above, there is plenty of science and technology behind the systems that I have coalesced such that no-one has any real need to be concerned that they are consuming water that has any harmful impurities. Rather, the distilled and purified water that can be bottled or ideally recirculated directly back to the homes from whence the effluent derives, has far fewer impurities than the tap water that was the original source (which they are presently consuming).
New developments will be located over reliable aquifers. Water is pumped, purified, and pumped to homes, businesses and agricultural facilities within the development. All effluent form those sectors is purified at a water purification facility within the development and reintroduced into the water purification facility’s clean product.
Almost all agriculture is managed within structures thereby maximizing yields while minimizing water loss to evaporation.
If you happen to be in Southern Arizona around the 28th of March of this year, please join us as we discuss and debate our options, including water conservation, changing crop mixes, and alternative water sources. Outside-of-the-box collaborative thinking is essential to pave the way for Arizonans to move into our future water reality.
