![]() The water releases, which began May 1 and will continue until September, are timed to mimic the vastly larger seasonal floods that once filled the desert valley before the delta was desiccated in the 20th century with the construction of dams in the United States.Īt the same time, the Colorado River is in a worsening shortage. “It’s an oasis in the middle of the desert,” Blancas said. They’ve spotted about 120 species of birds in the area. When the water flowed through part of the delta last year, plants released seeds that settled along the banks.īlancas and his colleagues have seen vegetation flourish along the river channel. This is the second straight year of water releases in Mexico. “These ecosystems are going to provide habitat for wildlife.” So this whole process is happening and at the same time it’s bringing environmental benefits,” Blancas said. “The ecosystem deteriorated because of the lack of water. Water is flowing again in parts of Mexico’s dry Colorado River Delta, bringing back a flowing river where there was a sandy riverbed. Those trees have grown rapidly and now drape the wetland in shade, attracting a variety of birds, such as yellow warblers, blue-gray gnatcatchers and vermilion flycatchers. Six years ago, workers removed invasive tamarisk trees at the site and planted a forest of native cottonwoods, willows and mesquites. It’s one of a few sites in Mexico where conservationists have been restoring wetlands and forests along the path where the river once flowed. This site, a habitat restoration area called El Chausse, is located in the southern portion of the delta, downstream from long stretches of dry riverbed, and was chosen as a place where limited water releases would boost the ecosystem by nourishing vegetation and expanding habitat for wildlife. She stood watching as the churning whitewater cascaded down the culvert toward the wetland. ![]() We are connecting the river,” said Gaby González Olimón, an environmental education coordinator for the Sonoran Institute, one of six groups in a coalition called Raise the River. And right now, this is an historic moment. “The river was almost dead for so many years. Those who are involved in the effort say that even as severe drought and the warming climate sap the Colorado River, the initiative shows how small amounts of water can be used to benefit struggling ecosystems. governments and with support from environmental groups. ![]() The water is being released from an irrigation canal to aid the delta’s parched environment as part of an agreement between the Mexican and U.S. Over the last eight weeks, water has been flowing in parts of the delta once again, restoring a stretch of river in Mexico where previously there had been miles of desert sand. Beside a canal that runs through farmland, rushing water roared through an irrigation gate and flowed down a concrete culvert toward a wetland fringed with cottonwoods and willows.įor decades, so much water has been diverted to supply farms and cities that the Colorado River has seldom met the sea and much of its delta in Mexico has been reduced to a dry riverbed, with only small remnants of its once-vast wetlands surviving. ![]()
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