Energy and Water Resources Interactions in Arizona

Abstract

Water and energy interact strongly in Arizona. The Arizona State Water Plan mentions that under 1970 normalized conditions 60% of total use in the State was from groundwater aquifers, a proportion which may have increased in the last decade. The utilization of groundwater resources requires substantial amounts of power. In addition, the Central Arizona Project is an energy- intensive pr9ject: its Granite Reef aqueduct will require a pumping lift of 1,084 ft (352 m) using about 1.665 x 10⁹ kwh/year. The Tucson aqueduct component will have an additional lift of 997 ft (304 m). The hydropower installations planned within the CAP will have only limited generating capacities: Agua Fria 3 Mw, Granite Reef 3.5 Mw, and Maxwell 11 Mw. The remainder of the load will have to be picked up by thermal power plants and by pumped storage schemes which, by the year 2000, may need over 100,000 acre-feet per year to make up evaporative losses. Thus, energy is required to make water available to users, and water is a necessary ingredient in energy-related activities. These and other water-energy interactions in the Lower Colorado Basin are discussed.