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Environment & Energy

NickB79

(20,135 posts)

23. Anyone who believes this is feasible has no idea of scale or cost

Reply to mitch96 (Original post)

Fri Oct 7, 2022, 11:18 PM

Oct 2022

Every oil pipeline in the US, repurposed to move water, wouldn't even be able to supply California's agricultural water demand. California uses 34 million acre feet per year of irrigation water. There are 326,000 gallons per ONE acre foot. The math is mind-boggling.

It would be substantially cheaper to build desalination plants on the West Coast than pump East Coast water 2000 miles over the Rockies. But the kicker is that even "cheaper" desalination water available today is too expensive for farmers, given the massive volumes they use. Piped water would be utterly unaffordable to any farmer west of the Rockies.

The truth is that agriculture as we know it in the US Southwest is largely doomed. Vast areas of farmland are now destined to become desert. It would be cheaper to build massive heated greenhouses in the Midwest than pipe water to the Southwest deserts.

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This is a neat idea. Moving flood waters to areas of drought. Via cleaned out existing pipe lines [View all] mitch96 Oct 2022 OP

Good luck with that. Srkdqltr Oct 2022 #1

Any better ideas? nt mitch96 Oct 2022 #2

we have been talking about this within our family recently rurallib Oct 2022 #3

It kinda sorta seems plausible. Romans did it way back when, Vietnam showed proof of concept. mitch96 Oct 2022 #5

If oil pipelines can be run for hundreds of miles, Bayard Oct 2022 #4

And if the water pipeline ruptured Jerry2144 Oct 2022 #10

But isn't this most seawater? viva la Oct 2022 #6

As for the Great Lakes, except for Lake Michigan, Canada owns half of them rurallib Oct 2022 #11

Well. I've been hollering about that for years now. CousinIT Oct 2022 #7

not really feasible moonshinegnomie Oct 2022 #8

In the vid they addressed this problem. Water is less viscus than oil and moves faster. mitch96 Oct 2022 #12

It's uphill all the way, at least 1500 miles. PoindexterOglethorpe Oct 2022 #9

Do the oil companies move oil up hill? I would "assume" it would cost less to move water than oil.nt mitch96 Oct 2022 #13

Is water selling for five dollars a gallon? PoindexterOglethorpe Oct 2022 #15

As stated in the vid, fixing the infrastructure after a flood is very expensive. mitch96 Oct 2022 #16

It took 7 years for the Colorado River to fill Lake Mead taxi Oct 2022 #14

I think... all of you guys who think it is such a good idea and easy peasy should get together, Srkdqltr Oct 2022 #17

Nobody said it would be easy but if you have a better plan let the drought and flooded people know. mitch96 Oct 2022 #18

Of course I don't have a better idea. Srkdqltr Oct 2022 #19

As I said in post #3, get some person with megabucks to deal with the project would be my guess. mitch96 Oct 2022 #20

romans did all that using gravity nt msongs Oct 2022 #21

Yup, great engineering for so long ago.. nt mitch96 Oct 2022 #22

Anyone who believes this is feasible has no idea of scale or cost NickB79 Oct 2022 #23