It's a bit hectic but I had no idea what it was going to turn out like. I just took about 30-60 stills with a GoPro every day, picked the best ones, and then combined them all into this timelapse.
Brady, we asked a local organization (the Sonoran Institute) about the canals, but because they're always changing where the water goes, some canals could be dry. There also aren't any good maps so I downloaded satellite maps of the delta on my iphone and used the GPS to navigate (GPS still works even when there's no cell service). Pretty goofy to sit in a packraft in a dirty canal looking at an iphone.
Wow. Given the irrigation networks, I would presume they never have any reason to let any excess run to the sea especially given the low levels in Powell and Mead. Is that the case or on spring run does some water actually hit the delta?
The Colorado never reaches the ocean any more (only exception was a few years ago when an earthquake damaged some of the irrigation canals on the Mexico side).
100% of the water of an average year is used by agriculture, cities, energy production, etc. The storage (ie reservoirs) in the Colorado basin is about 4-5 years worth of annual flow. Given that Mead and Powell are about half full, it would take a couple years of REALLY big runoff to fill all the reservoirs.
The only feasible way that it could reach the ocean again is by mandating that a certain amount flow through the Delta for "environmental" purposes. The US and Mexico are working on a treaty to do this, but it's a pretty complicated process. Here's some more about the new treaty: The United States and Mexico Can Restore the Colorado River Delta – News Watch
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