Red Delta: Fighting for Life at the End of the Colorado River

by Charles Bergman

The powerful story of the delta's restored natural diversity with clear information on the "river of law" that governs water allotments to it.

288 pages, Paperback

First published October 7, 2002

About the author

A writer and photographer, Charles Bergman has lived nearly his whole life in the Pacific Northwest. He’s a long-time teacher of English at Pacific Lutheran University. He’s the author of four books, including Wild Echoes: Encounters with the Most Endangered Animals in North America. He’s written extensively on wildlife and animals in national magazines, including Smithsonian, Audubon and Natural History and National Geographic. His article on wildlife trafficking in Latin America was the cover story in Smithsonian. His work springs from a wild dedication to the Earth and its creatures. His writing and photography have won several awards, including the Washington State Book Award, Southwest Book Award, Ben Franklin Book Award, and he was a PEN USA Literary Award finalist. He has a particular love for the Southern Hemisphere and has completed two Fulbright Fellowships, in Mexico and Ecuador. He has taught study tours in Antarctica six times.

Reviews

[Florence Buchholz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I once read that damming a river will cause environmental degradation. I never understood that statement until reading this book about the delta of the Colorado River. The Colorado River travels through Colorado, Utah, Arizona and forms a border of California. Then it dips into Mexico on its way to the Gulf of California. In the early part of the twentieth century, the Colorado delta was a land rich in wildlife. The Cucapa tribespeople fished its waters. As the American west was developed the need for water became paramount to farmers and politicians and the river was dammed in several places. Nary a trickle reached the delta in Mexico and the land became arid and despoiled. Through an accidental release of water and a growing environmental consciousness there is a resurgence of the wetlands of the delta and a chance for a permanent renewal. The situation is frought with uncertainties, though, because the delta is in competition with agricultural interests and growing cities - all clamoring for that most rare and precious of western resources.