IMPACT Magazine Features Navajo Nation Wicked Water Problems

Feb. 15, 2021
Image
Banner Water Resources Impact, Jan 2021
The American Water Resources Association (AWRA) just released a new issue of its magazine, Water Resources IMPACT, on the theme of “Wicked Water Problems.” WRRC Director Sharon B. Megdal was the lead guest editor of this issue and authored a feature article titled, “Takeaways from the 2020 AWRA Annual Conference Panel on Wicked Water Problems.” Other articles featured wicked water problems faced by Native American Tribes, including two that address water-related challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the Navajo Nation. Crystal Tulley-Cordova from the Navajo Nation Department of Water Resources co-authored, “Chronic Wicked Water Problems in the Navajo Nation Heightened by the COVID-19 Pandemic, along with Nikki Tulley, UArizona PhD student, Bidtah Becker from the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, and Karletta Chief, Associate Professor and Extension Specialist in the Department of Environmental Science at UArizona. In addition to describing the problems, they highlight some of the efforts made to improve the community's access to water. Chief co-authored a second article, “Addressing Food-Energy-Water Insecurities of the Navajo Nation through University-Community Collaboration,” which presents partnerships to develop solar water purification and greenhouse technologies for high-yield food production on the Navajo Nation.