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Rivers continually change throughout the seasons and over the years, but for centuries people have brought major changes to rivers through many activities. Change accelerated as the number of people in Arizona increased since the Civil War, especially as almost all human activity in the desert depends in some way on water.
Some of these changes are temporary, but many are irreversible. This poster briefly chronicles activities that caused change such as dams, water diversions, groundwater pumping, overgrazing, urbanization, mining, agriculture, introduction of exotic species and other activities. The poster also illustrates the kinds of changes wrought including dewatered streams, increased flooding, lakes replacing flowing streams, increased erosion, increased pollution, loss of wildlife habitat and other changes. It also illustrates changes such as restoration projects and nature preserves.
While people may dispute the value of flowing streams versus dams, of populated cities versus cottonwood-lined streams, the fact of change is indisputable, as this poster illustrates.