IN THIS ISSUE: Reflections, After the Fire, WRRC Presentation, APW, Agricultural Conservation, EPA-BOSC
Reflections: On the Meaning of
Indigenous Water Resilience
Prior to the WRRC’s 2021 Annual Conference, Tribal Water Resilience in a Changing Environment, I penned an essay entitled “On the Meaning of Water Resilience.” The concept of resilience is ubiquitous in conversations and the literature on water challenges. I questioned whether any of the commonly used definitions captured the Indigenous view of resilience. I highlighted key words from some of the cited definitions: adapt, reorganize, capacity, functions, sustainable, lifestyle, future. I noted: “Water resilience is not only about supply. It is about how the natural and human-connected systems live with the water. Perhaps a term to think about is coexistence: how we as humans co-exist with our natural water systems. Our ability to be resilient requires us to think about this co-existence in everything we do, including how we build and design our communities and their structures.” And I invited the reader to attend the conference, held virtually August 30 through September 1, 2021.

EVENTS
 
Date: Tuesday, Oct 26, 2021
Time: 12:00 - 1:15 pm MST
Location: Webinar Only
 
Speaker:
Richard N. Morrison, Retired Attorney; Co-Founder of the Morrison Institute for Public Policy
 
Quite often events described as “Black Swans” are really not quite that. They are more like grey swans—almost black, but not quite. In other words, there are some hugely important events in life that are disproportionate in their effects but not entirely foreseeable.

There are at least three water-related examples that come to mind; events in Arizona that were almost Black Swan events, and the moral to the story in each case seems to be that we can always do a better job of planning and should try to do so.

In this presentation, Richard Morrison will discuss an example from Pinal County in some detail.
Upcoming WRRC Events


Sarah E. Abney, PhD Candidate, Dept. of Environmental Science, W.E.S.T. Center
Ammon F. Cadogan, Water Resources Engineer, Craftwater Engineering


Betsy Wilkening, President, Polar Educators
Kristen Poppleton, Senior Director of Programs, Climate Generation

Diego Berger, PhD, Coordinator of International Projects, Mekorot
NEWS
After the Fire: A Public Meeting October 29-30

This year, the Telegraph and Mescal Fires impacted hundreds of lives and charred over 250,000 acres of land in central Arizona. Driven by persistent drought and exacerbated by extreme temperatures, the fires burned across Pinal and Gila Counties and San Carlos Apache Reservation, damaging dozens of structures, and causing evacuations of multiple communities. Following containment, the record monsoon season triggered floods and debris flows that threatened property and lives. Despite these hardships, natural disasters have a way of binding communities together, creating opportunities for collaboration toward recovery and resilience. On October 29 and 30, the public is invited to Bullion Plaza Cultural Center & Museum in Miami, AZ to hear from natural resource managers and community leaders about the short and long-term impacts of the fires on the landscape and watershed. The Cobre Valley Watershed Partnership is hosting this event in collaboration with Bullion Plaza Cultural Center & Museum, US Forest Service, the WRRC, and UArizona Cooperative Extension.
Colorado River Basin Presentation Available
 
A 20-minute presentation, Tackling Wicked Water Problems in the Transboundary Colorado River Basin, is available for viewing on the WRRC website. This recorded keynote presentation was to be shown at a conference in Morocco on October 20, 2021. Announcement of postponement of the in-person conference arrived a few days after the recording was submitted. Due to the high interest in the low-flow conditions of the Colorado River locally, nationally, and internationally, WRRC Director Sharon Megdal is making the recorded presentation and slides freely available. A written supplement to the presentation is Dr. Megdal’s August 2021 Reflections, “Adapting to a Drier Future.” Feel free to distribute to your networks or assign to students!

Meet APW’s New Tucson AmeriCorps Members
 
Each year, AmeriCorps offers opportunities for adults of all ages and backgrounds to serve through a network of partnerships with local and national nonprofit groups. The APW program coordinators work with AmeriCorps members to ensure the delivery of quality programs to their constituents. Please join APW in welcoming four new Tucson AmeriCorps members to its team.
Paying Farmers Not to Grow
 
In a new water conservation program, farmers in Southern California are paid to leave some of their fields unplanted. Water that would be used to irrigate the fields is left in the Colorado River (in Lake Mead), helping to slow the decline of the critical reservoir. The program, funded by the US Bureau of Reclamation, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Southern Nevada Water Authority, and the Central Arizona Project (CAP), will pay $38 million to farmers over the course of three years and is estimated to result in three feet of additional water in Lake Mead. In a recent article from the LA Times, Chuck Cullom, manager of Colorado River programs at CAP says, “We all share the river, we all share the risk. As the system becomes more vulnerable, we need all of the sectors to work together.” As fields are fallowed, the payments farmers receive provide stable income that is not subject to price volatility. CAP is also supporting a similar program in Arizona. Farmers are supplied with drip irrigation systems that use significantly less water to irrigate a field. A pilot project in 2020 with the Colorado River Indian Tribes tested the drip irrigation system on 40 acres of sorghum. The result was that the crop used half the water and was of slightly higher quality. CAP has expanded the program to include more acreage in 2021 and plans further development going forward.

Image: USBR
EPA Seeks Nominations for Committee of Scientific Advisors

EPA is seeking nominations for experts to serve on the Board of Scientific Counselors (BOSC), which advises EPA’s Office of Research and Development. The BOSC is composed of distinguished non-EPA scientists, engineers, and economists who are experts in their fields. The EPA Administrator appoints members for a term of up to six years. They serve as Special Government Employees for the purpose of providing independent expert advice to EPA. In May 2017, however, the federal administration began implementing its decision to suspend EPA’s BOSC, announcing that the contracts of more than half of its 18 members would not be renewed. Currently, BOSC operates under a charter stating that the committee will be composed of approximately 20 members and will meet approximately two to three times a year. According to its announcement, “EPA will consider nominees from industry, business, public and private research institutes or organizations, academia, government (federal, state, local, and tribal) and non-government organizations, and other relevant interest areas.” Nominations are being accepted until November 12, 2021.

Individuals and organizations can nominate themselves or others via the BOSC website. More information on the expertise sought and selection criteria can be found at Federal Register: Request for Nominations of Experts to the EPA Office of Research and Development's Board of Scientific Counselors.
WATER JOBS

Please visit WRRC's website for a complete listing of water jobs & opportunities.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
OTHER NOTICES
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