User:Kem25/sandbox/Land and Water Use

Saguaro National Park


Tucson, Arizona is home to the largest cacti in the nation. The Saguaro Cactus is the universal symbol of the American West that provides nesting areas, shelter, and food for many animals. The Saguaro National Park, located in Southern Arizona, protects the native species and wildlife of the Sonoran Desert. It has two locations on both sides of the city of Tucson located East and West with a total of 91,327 acres. The eastern section of the Saguaro National Park is larger, contains many mountains, rises over 8,000 feet, and has 128 miles of hiking trails. The western portion has a denser saguaro forest and is lower in elevation.

The Saguaro National Monument was created in 1933. Then in 1975, 71,400 acres of the Saguaro WIlderness area was added. The Saguaro National Park was not established until October 14, 1994. It has provided many activities to thousands of visitors which include watching the breathtaking Arizona sunsets, hiking, picnics, and embracing the cactus diversity. However, there are any threats that affect this park, this includes invasive plants, fires, theft, and vandalism. The Saguaro Cactus is protected under the Native Plant Protection Act. If an individual is caught cutting down a saguaro, they may be charged with felony criminal damage that can result in 25 years in prison. Other actions of vandalism that include transplanting the cactus and theft will result in high fees and jail time.

Las Cienegas National Conservation Area
Las Cienegas National Conservation Area in Southeastern Arizona protects more than 45,000 acres of railing grasslands and woodlands. The oak-studded hills in the region connect several lush riparian corridors and "sky island" mountain ranges. Within the Las Ciengas National Conservation Area flows the Cienega Creek that supports the diverse plant and animal community and is rich in cultural and historic resources. The Empire and Cienega ranches are now managed by the Bureau of Land Management under the principals of ecosystem-management and multiple uses for future generations to enjoy. The Bureau of Land Management has formed a partnership with Empire Ranch Formation, a non-profit organization, who is dedicated to preserving the landscapes and historic buildings. There are many activities for visitors to do, which include birdwatching, wildlife viewing, picnicking, hunting, horseback riding, hiking, mountain biking, primitive camping, visiting historic sites, photography, and scenic drives.

Los Morteros Conservation Area
Los Morteros is located south of the Town of Marana's El Rio Open Space Preserve. It's 120 acres of land embodies major traditions of the region that include Mexican, Spanish, Native American, and the American Territorial. It is a site that was once inhabited by a large NativeAmerican village between about A.D. 850 and 1300. It was once a large village that stretched North and South along the Santa Cruz River and Past Silver Road. The site was named "Los Morteros" by archaeologists because they discovered many many bedrock mortars on the site. Los Morteros is a site where many important events took place in Southern Arizona. The undisturbed buried remains make Los Morteros an important cultural resource because they provide a lot of information about the history of the Tucson Basin. In fact, Tohono O'odham Nation considers this place as an ancestral site. The Pima County Conservation Area protects the archaeological and historic resources to preserve them for the future of Pima County.

Agriculture
There are many agricultural areas in Tucson in which they cultivate the soil, grow crops, and raise livestock. The plant and animal products are prepared for people to use and distribute into markets. The crops grown in Tucson include corn, cotton, wheat, pecans, vegetables, alfalfa, barley, citrus, and hay.

Civilization


Tucson is a large city that lies in Arizona Uplands of the Sonoran Desert. It is home to a large population of 545,975. Land use in this area is used for recreational, transport, agricultural, residential and commercial purposes. The land in the AZ Uplands is used to make houses, malls, stores, airports, roads, etc. As the population continues to grow by the minute, more and more land will be taken from the desert. Humans are the biggest threat to the wildlife that lives in the AZ Uplands.

Residential Land Use
Hermosillo is the capital of a large city that is centrally located in the Northwestern Mexican State of Sonora. It has a population of over 812,229 inhabitants. It is the 16th largest state in Mexico. As the population continues to increase, more land will be taken to accommodate the growing population. The majority of land around the Plains of Sonora has been taken over by humans for residential, agricultural, transport, recreational, and commercial purposes.

Agricultural Land Use


Hermosillo uses some of their lands for agriculture, growing crops that include grapes, wheat, flowers, alfalfa, walnuts, and chickpeas. Rico Farm in Hermosillo, Mexico at Campo San Luis grows vegetables and has row crops that include tomatoes, melons, cucumbers, eggplants, and squash that are primarily grown for transport. This farm manages approximately 4,000 acres of land and most of the area is left in a natural state. Livestock is also important in this Hermosillo. There are many farms that raise cattle, sheep, pigs, horses, goats, and even bees.

Commercial Land Use
Industry and manufacturing is the dynamic sector of the economy in Hermosillo. Thirty percent of the population is employed by 26 major manufacturers in Hermosillo. Products manufactured in Hermosillo include cars, computers, televisions, textiles, wood products, cellular phones, printing, food processing, chemicals, and more. Commerce employs more than half of the population. Therefore, the majority of the land is used for commercial purposes.

Tucson
Considering todays average Tucson family uses 107 gallons per day of water, it is necessary to consider options on how water is obtained. In the early years of Tucson, its main source of water was the Santa Cruz River. Once the river ceased to flow near the city Tucson, a new source of water had to be found thus Tucson began relying on wells for their water supply. One of the most prominent water suppliers of Tucson is Tucson Water. Their company accounts for 200 wells, 61 reservoirs, and 266 sampling stations within the Tucson area. With the introduction of the Central Arizona Project (CAP) in 1973, Tucson was able to receive 1.5 million acre-feet of Colorado River water to be pumped via canal to Pima, Pinal, and Maricopa counties. With this water Tucson separate it into 35% municipal and industrial, 25% agriculture, 10% Native American communities, 30% banked underground for future use. The banked water is stored in local aquifers, such as the two in Avra Valley and one near the Santa Cruz River, to be used in possible future water shortages. Since the banking began the water tables in these aquifers have increased.

San Pedro River
The San Pedro River has been said to be the last undammed desert river. Like many other rivers in the desert the San Pedro is drying up, leaving the communities that rely on it without water that is necessary for life. The cause may be that over pumping groundwater out of reservoirs at a rapid rate leaves the reservoir unable to produce water at a quick enough pace. It is projected that in 2020 the deficit of how much water being pumped compared to the amount of water recharging the reservoir will reach 13,000 acre-feet annually.

Santa Cruz River
The Santa Cruz River was once Tucson’s primary water source but when it ceased to flow past the area it left Tucson searching for other options. Droughts among other factors have played into the disappearance of this river. The river has been steadily flowing through the north of Tumacacori and south into Mexico due to the addition of the Nogales International Wastewater Treatment Plant that releasing 1.6 million gallons per day of treated water into the river, making the Santa Cruz River an effluent-driven system. Still the Santa Cruz River is home to a variety of rare vegetation. Efforts are being made in order to preserve this river and the ecosystem that relies on it.

Hermosillo
Sonora’s capital, Hermosillo, has had a fast-growing population for many years now. With the introduction of a major company facility such as Ford, the city blossomed. With its growing population, Hermosillo faces issues such as water shortages. The Sonora and San Miguel rivers are important to water supply and are used for irrigation, feeding the Abelardo L. Rodriguez Dam. The average streamflow of the Rio Sonora has been declining due to droughts seeing the average streamflow decrease from 52 million m^3 in 1981-1995 to an average of 20.9 million m^3 average streamflow in 1996-2005, leaving less water available to the city. This being said 75% of Hermosillo’s water supply comes from groundwater reserves. One of the aquifers near Hermosillo is the Costa de Hermosillo. When too much water is being extracted via wells from coastal aquifers, like the Costa de Hermosillo, sea water may seep in. Salinity intrusion of the water being extracted from the wells was being seen in the late 1950s. When salinity intrusion occurs closure of these wells may seem inevitable; as can be seen in Costa de Hermosillo wells where 105 out of the 498 had to be closed.

Sonora River
The Rio Sonora is a river in Sonora that stretches from western Mexico to Kino Bay. The river feeds into the Abelardo L. Rodriguez reservoir and is used for irrigation purposes. This being said the average streamflow of the Rio Sonora has been declining from 52 million m^3 in 1981-1995 to an average of 20.9 million m^3 average streamflow in 1996-2005. In 2014 a toxic mine spill contaminated the waters spilling about 11 million gallons of copper sulfate acid solution and other metals into the river. The river water has since been declared safe.

Abelardo L. Rodriguez Dam
The Abelardo L. Rodriguez Dam is located in Sonora’s capital, Hermosillo. Two rivers feed the dam, the Sonora and the San Miguel River. Sources say that out of the nine dams in the region, the Abelardo L. Rodriguez has one of the three least storage capacities. From its construction in 1948 to 1981 the water from the dam was used for agricultural purposes, leaving the city of Hermosillo to obtain its water from wells surrounding the dam. In the years following 1981 the water from the dam began being used for domestic purposes.