Ken isn't wrong. There is a larger problemwith Colorado over allocation. But my point is that this "ranking" purports to discriminate among various cities and misunderstands the... more »
How We Rated Cities
For 2008 we newly measured each city's water supply, in addition to tap water quality and other data. Desert cities and cities hundreds of miles away from their fresh water sources fell in this year's rankings largely because of our new water supply rankings. Data analyzed included distance in miles from primary source of untreated drinking water, dependence of water on snowpack, level of drought or other conflict, population growth rate and gallons of water consumed per person per day.
Tied for first place are Great Lakes cities of Chicago, Cleveland and Milwaukee. Following in rank for solid water supply longevity are Detroit at number four and New Orleans at number five.
Without steady supplies of fresh, drinkable water, our modern cities would quickly devolve into their previous selves: unsanitary, cholera-stricken, less populated. In a word, Medieval. Gigantic concrete and steel water delivery systems across deserts, state lines and over foothills ensure instant supplies of fresh water to each and every faucet and showerhead in cities without ample nearby supplies. Cities including Portland, Seattle and San Francisco depend on a stable water supply for their electricity as well.
Most cities in our survey reported having conservation programs and goals in place, and many have dramatically reduced daily per-resident consumption over the last decade. Lawn-watering sunbelt cities fared worse than east coast cities where few residents even have a lawn, much less water one. There remain huge opportunities for business, residents and government in cities everywhere to decrease per-person water use.
For more background on the issues, drink in Marc Reisner's excellent primer on water use history in the Western United States, Cadillac Desert, or check out the Water Crisis topic over at Wikipedia. The Pacific Institute, led by Peter Gleik, addresses water supply issues with its comprehensive Water Program.
"Temperature increases in mountainous areas with seasonal snowpack will lead to increases in the ratio of rain to snow and decreases in the length of the snow storage season (very high confidence). It is likely that reductions in snowfall and earlier snowmelt and runoff would increase the probability of flooding early in the year and reduce the runoff of water during late spring and summer. Basins in the western United States are particularly vulnerable to such shifts." --National Water Assessment, Pacific Institute, 2000
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US City Rankings, next edition!