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In Arizona, development, in addition to drought and climate change, threatens fragile water resources. The San Pedro River in the southeastern part of the state is an imperative part of the area's ecosystem and home to a wide variety of wildlife. However, flaws in the way water is managed have led to the river's decline. Although the river is fed primarily by groundwater, Arizona's laws do not require considering the river when building new wells. As a result, wells in the area have doubled since 1987 to nearly 9,000, causing decreased river levels and intermittent flows.
Arizona's primary source of water, the Colorado River, has experienced similar problems throughout the past decades. Even without the exacerbating effects of drought and climate change, water managers acknowledge that increasing demand alone would be a significant problem for the Colorado River. Overuse has caused reservoirs to drop, but users continue to demand as much as ever. Eric Kuhn and John Fleck point out that "the original founding documents of the river’s management were seen to create a promise of water, and few were willing to question whether the Colorado River could deliver." Now, that question is imperative to ensure that water is available into the future.
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If national parks are 'America’s best idea,' then building walls across them surely counts among our very worst. There is, quite simply, no way to safeguard borderland wilderness while building a wall across it.”
