Website Evalutaions: Water Shortage in the Western United States

Henry Ross

Website Evalutaions: Water Shortage in the Western United States

1. “Water Quality Law Summary”

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Summary: This website provides detailed information concerning all water management legislation in the Western United States. It is put forth by the National Science and Technology Center in conjunction with the Bureau of Land Management. From the homepage, researchers may use the index to look up specific laws and water conservation programs and their specific manifestations in 11 western states. The states documented are Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. There is little analysis or interpretation, but very much data that is up to date and accurate. The abstract mission statement of the site is quoted below:

“In an effort to meet these obligations, this website includes a review of federal and western state water quality laws pertinent to the management of public lands. The website includes a detailed examination of federal statutes including the Clean Water Act, the Coastal Zone Management Act, and the Oil Pollution Act.”

Accuracy/Depth of Information (10/10): Many pages use upwards of 30 footnotes (e.g. Chapter 3: Water Quality Standards) and cite primarily from legislation and government agencies, both recent and dated. Charts and tables are often used to present information about consumption and preservation of water and how laws control them in the Western US. Being a government site, controlled by the U.S. Department of the Interior, the information seems completely unbiased (based on my observation).

Readability (5/10): Though well-organized, this website lacks illustrations and user-friendly content. Instead, its sections are long and filled with legal jargon and the complexity of court cases and EPA amendments can be unnecessary.

Citations/References (9/10):

A state-by-state summary of river management under the Clean Water Act.

A similar resource on the CWA done by the Environmental Protection Agency, this is a fine reference from the BLM site

A database run by the National Council for Science and the Environment

Numerous reputable government agencies and organizations are cited by this website and used effectively to direct users to other strong sources of western water depletion information.

2. “Are We Ready for Water Shortages in Western States?”

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Summary: This article, submitted by Sarah Bates, a prominent writer on water laws for a reputable science blog “Science Progress,” focuses on the effects of climate change on the water problem in the western U.S. The article focuses specifically on problems the EPA has been working to fix and the action taken to fix them. The site, AlterNet is a commercial news site, but its articles are checked for accuracy or taken from reputable science journals. At the bottom of the page is a discussion board for feedback, which is less useful as a source but potentially helpful in obtaining different viewpoints about the author’s claims.

Accuracy/Depth of Information (5/10): The article refers only to government studies for its facts (e.g. “In a report just released by the U.S. Department of Energy that analyzed a scenario in which 20 percent of the nation's electricity is generated from wind power by the year 2030, the DOE noted that such a shift would reduce water use by approximately 8 percent.”). Its facts are accurate, but they are sparse and often general. The article is only two pages long, and it is much more useful as a tool to summarize the issue than to analyze it in depth. Nevertheless, for a non-government site, it is a reliable and helpful source.

Readability (9/10): Bullet points, simple prose, and tight organization make this website more accessible for research. Unlike other sites, this site answers a single specific question and does so with language that is technical enough, but not cryptic.

Citations/References (9/10): Many sources are incorporated in the research of Bates, all of them government sources and good prospects for further research. Though citations and footnotes are absent from the text, hyperlinks offer direct connection to several sites, such as:

This EPA publication, entitled “National Water Program Strategy: Response to Climate Change” is the basis for the discussion of the article and offers the complete government response to the issue of water depletion

A broader resource for international action on water control (as a result of climate change), this site is useful in gaining an understanding of international codes regarding the issue, but less regarding specifically the western states.

The article refers to this site because it contains the document issued by the IPCC (discussed on the site) regarding water issues with specific mention of the United States and its various regions.

Produced by the Natural Resources Defense Council, this site provides information on the book Energy Down the Drain, a report on water utilities and their effect on energy and resources in the U.S.

3. An Impending Water Shortage In The West

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Summary: This article, by Bettina Boxall (a staff writer for the L.A. Times) was published in October 2004 and reproduced on the Montana Associated Technology Roundtables website. Though it is slightly outdated, its topic is very relevant to the water crisis in the western U.S. It specifically mentions several places (e.g. Powell reservoir and Hoover Dam) in the Western United States that are—and will continue to be—affected negatively by the aquifer depletion occurring there. Many state experts on the issue are also quoted in this article commenting on the Colorado River and other bodies of water crucial to their state’s economy.

Accuracy/Depth of Information (7/10): Much of the data given in this site is projected data, so it is difficult to evaluate its accuracy. Certainly, the author is not biased and is conscientious about her facts—most of her facts are from state websites or geographical sources (not cited). The depth of analysis is greater than the depth of information, which is certainly adequate, and the source site is a state group (though not .gov) dedicated to scientific issues of this sort.

Readability (6/10): The format of the article is well-structured and simple. Short paragraphs on specific topics (i.e. Lake Mead, western drought) divide the large amount of information well, though this site also lacks consumption graphs and other visuals that could help illustrate the information better.

Citations/References (4/10): While all sources are accounted for within the article, few precise references are offered on the subject of the Colorao River and other major topics in the article. Instead, loosely related environmental issues can be accessed through the web page, indexed on the left-hand side of the page. Several articles from MATR are listed below:

Originally published in the New York Times, this Andrew Revkin article discusses climate change and the “crucial water” in the West. This is also a more recent article with up-to-date predictions of water shortages in that region.

The Southern Nevada Water authority site, mentioned in the article, with information about water resources, conservation, and drought policies in the West

Also mentioned, the California Department of Water Resources has a great role in irrigation and drinking water control and has useful information intended for California citizens on this subject.

4. Water Conservation

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Summary: McGraw-Hill publishes this encyclopedia entry on water conservation as part of its AccessScience Scholastic database. The site includes a section on political issues over water in the West, but it talks is detail about all aspects of water conservation in the United States and the science and technology involved. To gain a better understanding of why water shortages are an issue, this site is very comprehensive. On the other hand, if a researcher is looking for specific information on the western U.S., its value is more limited.

Accuracy/Depth of Information (10/10): From the water cycle, to human impacts, to the effects climate change, this website provides answers to most questions about water supplies and what affects them. Being an encyclopedia entry with a long bibliography, the information on this site can be trusted and used confidently for research.

Citations/References (10/10): This page includes hyperlinks to related terms inside the document, information on how to cite the source properly, a complete bibliography, and an “Additional Readings” section. A small selection of the numerous references (those especially helpful in studying Western water depletion) are shown below:

From the United States Geological Survey, with up-to-date Western state precipitation charts and consumption totals, state-by-state.

inter-American water resources network, an activist site for North and South American collaboration in water preservation.

the EPA office of water website, where regional information and groundwater preservation strategies may be accessed

National Resources Conservation Service—from the US department of Agriculture, specific agricultural water practices for western states

5. Ground Water Depletion in the High Plains Aquifer

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Summary: This article, provided by Geology.com, is a good source of information about the High Plains Aquifer, the most substantial aquifer of the West, spanning ten states and 174,000 square miles. The website talks about the decline in groundwater levels and water storage, and supports its information with three illustrations. Its information was compiled by V.L. Mcguire in 2007, so it is a up-to-date source. The article accurately cites several facts about irrigation in states such as Kansas and Colorado and is useful as a case study of a major aquifer that typifies the greater issue of water in the west. This is a great for understanding the impact of farmers and agriculture on the water table in the West.

Accuracy/Depth of Information (7/10): The progression of the issue over time is shown in detail by this cite, and the information is valid and can be cross-checked with other sources. The site lacks data about the causes of the depletion, but its numbers about the effects are reliable and strong.