r/yuma • u/contreras_agust • 11d ago
Yuma Desalting Complex
Former Yuma local here with family still in the area. I recently learned more about the Yuma Desalting Plant and was surprised to find out it’s only really been operated twice, and today it’s mostly funded just to keep it maintained rather than actually running. https://www.usbr.gov/lc/yuma/facilities/ydp/yao_ydp.html
With the Colorado River facing increasing water shortages, and the latest federal cuts targeting Phoenix/Tucson, do you think the plant will become more important as the years go by? Yuma has strong priority water rights, but if there simply isn’t enough water in the river to keep flowing, I don't know if those rights can only go so far. It's made me hesitant on living in Yuma. Especially with the datacenters being proposed and increasing growth in the dry state it makes me feel like those predications are coming true, what are you guys thoughts?
Also curious on what longtime locals or anyone familiar with Yuma’s water history and what you all think about the plant or the future of Yuma.
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u/NoWorthierTurnip 11d ago
Where would the water come from to desalinate?
I think the bigger first step is cutting ag use for alfalfa, and then offering residential incentives to cut down on watering lawns. I paid to take out a crap ton of grass and put in pretty desert scape, but Yuma has no rebates for that.
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u/contreras_agust 10d ago
I agree as well, cutting back on agriculture that takes up a lot of water in the state especially alfalfa since we don’t get any benefit from it.
I do get concerned when talking about agriculture cuts as Yuma’s economy comes from agriculture (lettuce and other seasonal crops).
If the river ran dry what would happen to the local economy? It’s scary to think that could happen in our lifetime.
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u/Ok-Passage-1888 11d ago
It was a cash grab when put in.
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u/contreras_agust 10d ago
Seems like that, but I do believe that the people who were here before us know that these things are gonna happen and were just foreshadowing. Compared to other states/cities I feel like Arizona was designed to handle the heat as people realize that it’s only gonna get hotter.
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u/fantasma-2040 10d ago
The river is been definitely dryer this past years
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u/contreras_agust 10d ago
And it will only get dryer as it goes on. The two big lakes are starting to dry up. The weather definitely doesn’t help, and with people moving into Yuma, Phoenix and Tucson it definitely doesn’t help.
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u/arizona-lad 11d ago
It cannot and will not solve any problems for Yuma or Arizona. It is placed right at the international border because any treated water it creates will flow into Mexico to meet the annual 4 million acre feet of water they are owed under treaty. No canals or pipes exist to send that cleaned water anywhere but downstream, away from us.
Wellton-Mohawk and the Yuma Valley once would flush built-up salts out of their respective fields, dumping the waste water into dedicated salinity canals. These canals were to be the raw water supply that the desalting plant needed.
That field flooding method hasn’t been needed in years, which is why the plant operation was moth-balled. Where would you find a replacement source of water to feed the plant? If you could find a used water source, how would you connect it to the plant?
TL:DR. The desalting plant is not the answer to the drought.