FROM NEW YORK POST: An Arizona town competing for basic access to clean water has sunk more than 18 feet over the past eight decades — with no signs of stopping — as locals struggle to make headway against area megafarms reportedly sucking the land dry.
Residents of Wenden, an unincorporated community roughly 60 miles east of the Colorado River Reservation, have had to pivot to digging thousands of feet underground just to reach groundwater.
For many towns, this wouldn’t be an issue. But along the Colorado River, communities and companies are locked in battles over its water supply.
Wenden, a city that draws approximately 38% of its entire water supply from the Colorado River, shares this resource with major cities like Los Angeles and Phoenix, which consume more water.
However, as groundwater becomes increasingly scarce in Wenden, the remaining water supply for the entire community hangs in the balance, leaving many residents facing water shortages.
Gary Saiter, the head of the Wenden Water Improvement District, told NBC News that the situation is dire and could lead to a catastrophic failure.
“It’s a train wreck waiting to happen,” Saiter said. “In the last 15 years, Wenden itself has sunk into a subsidence bowl.”
“It’s absolutely out of balance. It’s not sustainable,” he added.
Over the past 15 years, Wenden has experienced a significant subsidence, sinking over 3.5 feet and sinking an additional 2.2 inches annually. This imbalance in water levels is unsustainable and poses a serious threat to the community’s survival.
A recent study conducted by Arizona State University revealed that the rapid increase in groundwater use in the Colorado River Basin is the primary cause of the sinkage.
Jay Famiglietti, a professor at ASU and the lead author of the study, explained that water behaves similarly to air, maintaining the pressure of the land.
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