The Arizona desert is my home territory, and the Colorado Plateau a favorite retreat. I know this country well, and was raised on a desert farm irrigated by water from the Colorado River and the Salt River Project. Fluctuations in the water supply for the desert southwest are legendary--as witnessed by the well-preserved ruins of ancient cultures long gone. For my entire lifetime, Americans have expected a permanent solution the water problem through technology, yet the best we can do so far is to impound rain and snowmelt into reservoirs along the river, and channel it--through open canals across barren deserts--to fields made in parched desert land. For more than 60 years, the region has seen exploding population growth, settlers' penchant for artificial "lakes," green lawns, golf courses, and swimming pools, and nation-wide prominence in agricultural production. And now, the water lifeline--the Colorado River--is in its tenth year of drought. Reservoirs across the southwest are reaching record lows, and two months of generous rainfall will not solve the problem. Water wars have long plagued the U.S. west, but will reach new extremes as the cities of Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and San Diego all compete with agri-biz, small farms, Native Americans, and Mexico for rights to a dwindling supply of water and food essential to survival.