Water projects that include large dams and water withdrawal systems alter seasonal and daily water flows (hydrology) and water temperatures, adversely affecting desert species that are adapted to the natural cycles in this region. Combined with water diversions for domestic and agricultural use, drought conditions from 2010 to 2015 in the Southwest adversely affected all desert aquatic habitats. Large rivers in the Southwest states, such as the Colorado River and the Rio Grande, have been greatly affected by the construction of dams and diversions that: interfere with fish migration; alter in-stream habitat characteristics including sediment and woody debris movement; change water quality and temperature; reduce access to off-channel [...]
