Current:Home > ContactU.S. says drought-stricken Arizona and Nevada will get less water from Colorado River -ProfitLogic
U.S. says drought-stricken Arizona and Nevada will get less water from Colorado River
Poinbank Exchange View
Date:2025-04-07 23:03:45
SALT LAKE CITY — For the second year in a row, Arizona and Nevada will face cuts in the amount of water they can draw from the Colorado River as the West endures an extreme drought, federal officials announced Tuesday.
The cuts planned for next year will force states to make critical decisions about where to reduce consumption and whether to prioritize growing cities or agricultural areas.
The cuts will also place state officials under renewed pressure to plan for a hotter, drier future and a growing population. Mexico will also face cuts.
"We are taking steps to protect the 40 million people who depend on the Colorado River for their lives and livelihoods," said Camille Touton, commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation.
The river provides water across seven states and in Mexico and helps feed an agricultural industry valued at $15 billion a year. Cities and farms are anxiously awaiting official estimates of the river's future water levels that will determine the extent and scope of cuts to their water supply.
That's not all. In addition to those already-agreed-to cuts, the Bureau of Reclamation said Tuesday that states had missed a deadline to propose at least 15% more cuts needed to keep water levels at the river's storage reservoirs from dropping even more.
For example, officials have predicted that water levels at Lake Mead, the nation's largest reservoir, will plummet further. The lake is currently less than a quarter full.
"The states collectively have not identified and adopted specific actions of sufficient magnitude that would stabilize the system," Touton said.
After putting last year's burden on the agricultural industry, Arizona officials will have to decide whether to spread additional pain to growing cities that rely on the river.
The cuts are not expected to have a tangible effect on Nevada, which has already implemented the region's most aggressive conservation policies, including grass bans and rebate programs.
While the Bureau of Reclamation is "very focused on just getting through this to next year," any cutbacks will likely need to be in place far longer, said University of Oxford hydrologist Kevin Wheeler.
"It's pretty clear that these reductions just have to stay in place until the drought has ended or we realize they actually have to get worse and the cuts have to get deeper," he said.
The cuts are based on a plan the seven states as well as Mexico signed in 2019 to help maintain reservoir levels.
Under that plan, the amount of water allocated to states depends on the water levels at Lake Mead. Last year, the lake fell low enough for the federal government to declare a first-ever water shortage in the region, triggering mandatory cuts for Arizona and Nevada as well as Mexico in 2022.
Officials expect the falling lake levels to trigger additional cuts to Nevada, Arizona and Mexico next year. States with higher priority water rights are not expected to see cuts.
Reservoir levels have been falling for years — and faster than experts predicted — due to 22 years of drought worsened by climate change and overuse of the river.
Scorching temperatures and less melting snow in the spring have reduced the amount of water flowing from the Rocky Mountains, where the river originates before it snakes 1,450 miles (2,334 kilometers) southwest and into the Gulf of California.
Already, extraordinary steps have been taken this year to keep water in Lake Powell, the other large Colorado River reservoir, which sits upstream of Lake Mead and straddles the Arizona-Utah border. Water from the lake runs through Glen Canyon Dam, which produces enough electricity to power between 1 million and 1.5 million homes each year.
After water levels at Lake Powell reached levels low enough to threaten hydropower production, federal officials said they would hold back an additional 480,000 acre-feet (more than 156 billion gallons or 592 million cubic meters) of water to ensure the dam could still produce energy. That water would normally course to Lake Mead.
Under Tuesday's reductions, Arizona will lose slightly more water than it did this year, when 18% of its supply was cut. In 2023, it will lose an additional 3%, an aggregate 21% reduction from its initial allocation.
Mexico will lose 7% of the 1.5 million acre-feet it receives each year from the river. Last year, it lost about 5%. The water is a lifeline for northern desert cities including Tijuana and a large farm industry in the Mexicali Valley, just south of the border from California's Imperial Valley.
Nevada also will lose water — about 8% of its supply — but most residents will not feel the effects because the state recycles the majority of its water used indoors and doesn't use its full allocation. Last year, the state lost 7%.
veryGood! (2)
Related
- Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
- The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show returns: How to watch the runway
- Trump says it would be a ‘smart thing’ if he spoke to Putin, though he won’t confirm he has
- Coca-Cola recalls canned drink mislabeled as zero-sugar: Over 13,000 12-packs recalled
- Dick Vitale announces he is cancer free: 'Santa Claus came early'
- Body camera footage shows Phoenix officers punch, shock deaf man with Taser
- Timothée Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow Share Steamy Kiss While Filming in NYC
- NFL MVP rankings: Lamar Jackson outduels Jayden Daniels to take top spot after Week 6
- The company planning a successor to Concorde makes its first supersonic test
- Mexico’s former public security chief set to be sentenced in US drug case
Ranking
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Camille Kostek Shares How Rob Gronkowski's BFF Tom Brady Remains in the Family
- Why Kristin Cavallari Thinks Celebs Like Kanye West and Britney Spears Have Been Cloned
- 'Diablo wind' in California could spark fires, lead to power shutdown for 30,000
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Wild caracal cat native to Africa and Asia found roaming Chicago suburb
- Republicans challenge more than 63,000 voters in Georgia, but few removed, AP finds
- How 'Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage' mirrors real-life wedding, baby for its stars
Recommendation
Intellectuals vs. The Internet
ReBuild NC Has a Deficit of Over $150 Million With 1,600 People Still Displaced by Hurricanes Matthew and Florence
Mega Millions winning numbers for October 15 drawing: Did anyone win $169 million jackpot?
Jill Biden is out campaigning again — but not for her husband anymore. She’s pumping up Harris
A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
Taylor Swift Assists With “Memories of a Lifetime” for Kansas City Chiefs Alum’s Daughter
How Jose Iglesias’ ‘OMG’ became the perfect anthem for the underdog Mets
The Billie Eilish x Converse Collab Is Here With Two Customizable Styles—and It’s Already Almost Sold Out