We — a small group of Art Historians, Geographers, and Photographers — made a field trip in November 2014 to Tucson’s Avra Valley Clearwater Recharge Facilities. The water flowing into the basin travels 336 miles from the Colorado River before it reaches Tucson. The recharge field receives 162,000 acre feet of water each year through the Central Arizona Project aqueduct which was created by the Colorado River Basic Project Act of 1968. The facility includes 543 acres of recharge basins. Tucson Water takes close to 65,000 acre feet per year for city water demands. The remaining 80,000 feet are stored in the aquifer.
Our Tucson Water hydrologists estimated that the system has enough water to meet Tucson’s demands for 2 1/2 years, if all other sources suddenly dried up. Who’s drinking who’s milkshake? Does this milkshake have endless refills?