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The High Desert Ledger

Field notes on water, land, weather and work across the American Southwest

WT 2 records · Latest record

Water in dry country

What the rivers, acequias, reservoirs and wells of the Southwest actually carry, how water is measured, shared, stored and lost, and what a household or a town can do with the share it holds.

WT-002WT-001

A folded paper road map and a bottle of water resting on the open tailgate of a pickup truck, a dry Southwestern valley with distant mountains stretching out behind, two pencils lying across the map, soft late afternoon light.
Plate WT-002 Owning the land in this valley has never meant owning the water that crosses it.

The tally of the slice

2The rack
  1. A folded paper road map and a bottle of water resting on the open tailgate of a pickup truck, a dry Southwestern valley with distant mountains stretching out behind, two pencils lying across the map, soft late afternoon light.
    WT-002

    How Water Rights Work in the Desert Southwest

    In the desert Southwest, water belongs to whoever put it to beneficial use first, not to whoever owns the land it crosses. Here is how that rule is administered today.

    Particulars
    Water in dry country · 854 words · 4 sources
    Caveat
    this record cites only ose.state.nm.us, dwr.colorado.gov, new.azwater.gov (+1)

  2. A folded USGS topographic map on a truck tailgate in low desert light, a pencil and a water bottle holding down the corners, dry arroyo visible in the background.
    WT-001

    Water Maps a Desert Keeper Reads Before a Crossing

    A desert keeper reads old water maps and archives before a crossing. What the records hold, what they leave out, and how to plan with them.

    Particulars
    Water in dry country · 1224 words · 2 sources
    Caveat
    this record cites only usgs.gov, blm.gov