Pipe Dreams: Water Supply and Pipeline Projects in the West

New water management strategies are needed in the western United States. With mounting populations, over-tapped rivers, extended droughts, severely damaged aquatic ecosystems, and the likelihood of future impacts from climate change, water managers face increasing challenges in locating reliable water supplies.

Some western water managers are working to conserve and reuse water supplies. However, NRDC's research has revealed another trend. Some water managers and entrepreneurs are pursuing a growing number of proposals for long-distance water supply pipelines. Some of these projects are extremely large in scale and would stretch for hundreds of miles, raising a host of questions for water policymakers and the public.

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