Water infrastructure : hybridized architecture along the Arizona canal

Abstract

Due to budget issues, the Central Arizona Project (CAP) canal has been left exposed to the arid desert environment since its construction in the 1970s. As a result, 5% of the amount of water diverted from the Colorado River is lost to evaporation and seepage from the exposed aqueduct and Lake Pleasant reservoir. This amount of loss is equivalent to the amount of water required to supply 75,000 households annually. With increasing pressures on the Central Arizona canal, we should restrategize and reinvest in this infrastructure in order to prevent further inefficiencies and further loss of water. The objective of this thesis aims to engage architecture with water infrastructure in order to transform the canal into a water-efficient repository and recreational venue while recuperating the amount of water loss from the canal. Through the act of hybridization, a regional amenity is created, serving as support for the water infrastructure as well as creating spatial experience of water collection. A series of architectural interventions along the canal serve as nodes for rainwater collection. These nodes function as public spas that combine the act of swimming with the act of collecting and cleansing water in order to create spatial experience and awareness of the issues of water.