In the midst of the worst drought in California history, the US and Mexico have come together to try and revive the Colorado River Delta, bringing it back from the brink of death, potentially, with artificial flooding.

1. Channeling the Colorado River
Delta Back From the Dead
By: Peter Getty
8/21/14

2. As a matter of geographic trivia…

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Did you ever wonder
where the Colorado
River drains into the
ocean?

4. It Doesn’t.

5. Like too many of the world’s great rivers today, the Colorado
River never makes it to the ocean in any recognizable form.

6. In fact, it’s rarely been closer than a
hundred miles to its natural drainage
point, into the Gulf of California, its
remnants diverted by the Morelos Dam.

7. As you might expect, the disappearance of
the Colorado River, which flows 1,450
miles from the Rocky Mountains to the Sea
of Cortez, has had a rather dramatic effect
on the Colorado River Delta.

8. And not for the better.

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Almost 30 years of the
river rarely reaching the
sea, has resulted in an
immense stretch of
riparian forest having all
but completely
disappeared, replaced by
invasive tamarisk shrubs.

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This has deprived
hundreds of migratory
bird species of a
previously important
place to rest and
shelter during their
arduous crossing of
the Sonora Desert.

11. As it turns out, however, it may be possible to
restore much of the delta with some surprisingly
reasonable water management practices.

12. An agreement between the US and Mexico
called Minute 319 was signed in November of
2012, and last March, in accordance with it, the
first "pulse flow" -- basically a small simulated
spring flood along the delta -- occurred.

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14. Scientists and observers from
universities and government
agencies of both countries
were there to see what would
happen, and the results, by
all accounts, have been
extremely promising.

15. 01
A periodic artificial flood has
already hinted strongly that the
delta is dormant, not dead

16. It's nice to see some good news for a change.

17. The fact the water flowing down the main river channel was tapped for the
exclusive benefit of the environment, may well be an unprecedented
demonstration of cooperation between the U.S. and Mexico on much
needed environmental sustainability issues.

18. Channeling the Colorado River
Delta Back From the Dead
By: Peter Getty
8/21/14