Energy Landscapes of the Southwest: The Unseen Cost of Sprawl Prof. Martin J. (Mike) Pasqualetti School of Geographical Sciences Arizona State University Tempe, AZ 85287 Pasqualetti@asu.edu

Overview Booming Phoenix Over-emphasis on Water Colorado Plateau Attributes Energy Landscapes as Hidden Costs Opportunities and Potential

Wild Arizona

Tamed* Arizona *and unsustainable

Metro Phoenix (growing @ 100,000 Per Year)

Phoenix is in a Tough & Isolated Place Denver 810 mi Salt Lake City 650 mi San Francisco 760 mi Los Angeles 400 mi ☼ Phoenix Houston 1160 mi

Water and Energy

Salt River Project Canal System 1 MAF/yr 131 miles of canals 7 dams

Central Arizona Project 336 miles Colorado R – Tucson 1.5 MAF/yr – 2.2 MAF/yr $3.6 billion to construct

The Enjoyment of Water

The Dangers of Energy

Hiding Energy

National Parks

Bryce

Zion

Canyonlands and the La Sals

Arches

Grand Canyon

Dolores River Canyon, SW Colorado

Monument Valley

Monument Valley

Navajo Mt and Straight Cliffs from Boulder Mountain

The apex of pre-Columbian Puebloan civilization Chaco Canyon The apex of pre-Columbian Puebloan civilization

Hogans on Navajo Reservation

Energy Landscapes Strip Mining

Coal sized and stored, ready for the conveyor belt

Conveyor Belt to move coal off Black Mesa

Black Mesa, Arizona

Energy Landscapes Transmission

Isolation and Distance Require Long Transmission Lines

Energy Landscapes Transportation

Storage Silo holds 24,000 tons

Coal Silo Loads BM&LP Railroad

Electric Train Moves Coal to Navajo Generating Station

Coal Slurry Controversy Mohave Generating Station closed on December 31, 2005 after failing to reach agreements with Navajo and Hopi leaders on coal and water leases. The pipeline and the Black Mesa coal mine also ceased operation

Indigenous Opposition

Energy Landscapes Air Quality

Four Corners Power Plant Mojave Power Plant Four Corners Power Plant

Navajo Generating Station installed sulfur scrubbers in 1998 to help improve air quality in Grand Canyon

Degraded Visibility

Energy Landscapes Hydro

Up Face Canyon, 1962 Up West Canyon Creek, August 1963 Up Dungeon Canyon, June 1962

Navajo Generating Station Plumes © National Geographic Society

Opportunities and Potential

Snapshot of Arizona’s Energy Situation Arizona’s level of population growth will outpace all other mountain states Arizona’s benefits from energy efficiency will meet or exceed all other states Arizona’s greatest opportunity to meet demands with local resources is with renewable energy Arizona’s greatest need will continue to be to meet demands without further degrading environmental quality

Opportunities for Renewables and Efficiency Rapid growth favors quick and substantial benefits from sustainable architecture and engineering World-class resource favors solar/PV, solar hot water, and solar/hydrogen Open space, isolated areas of demand, rapid growth, polluted air, add value to the development of solar energy Unusual co-located resources of wind, solar, and geothermal favor ‘renewable energy parks’ (e.g. Springerville)

Solar Energy – Arizona Leads the Nation in Resources

Distribution of Arizona’s Solar Resource Data source: NREL, 2002

Arizona’s Approach to Basic Needs? Resource Inversion Solar Energy (MW) Water (gallons) Assumptions: Solar based on 1800MW WRA est for 2020 and <15 MW PV installed/planned. Water based on 0.5 a-f/yr household use and 7” ave annual rainfall

Energy Landscapes of the Southwest: The Unseen Cost of Sprawl

Energy Landscapes of the Southwest: The Unseen Cost of Sprawl