Tuesday, March 5, 2024 | 3:40 p.m.
Federal officials have released a final conservation plan to prevent Lake Mead from falling to critically low levels, threatening water delivery and power production at Hoover Dam.
The agreement among the seven Colorado River Basin states would save some 3 million acre feet of water through the end of 2026, officials said. It is expected to be formally adopted in the coming weeks, officials said.
Updated modeling indicates the risk of reaching “critical elevations” at Lake Mead and Lake Powell in Arizona has been substantially reduced, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
The water level at Lake Mead sits at 1,075 feet, the highest since May 2021, when it was at 1,073 feet.
“As a result of the commitment to record volumes of conservation in the basin and improved hydrology, the chance of falling below critical elevations was reduced to 8% at Lake Powell and 4% at Lake Mead through 2026,” the bureau said in a statement.
But water levels at the reservoirs remain historically low, and long-term conservation measures are needed to ensure the sustainability of the Colorado River system, officials said.
“As we close out this chapter on our short-term efforts, we look toward the future with eyes wide open on how to solve for the challenges that still lie ahead,” Laura Daniels-Davis, acting deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, said in a statement.
The Interior Department today announced three new agreements with water districts in California to conserve up to 399,153 acre-feet water in Lake Mead through 2026.
An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons, enough water to serve two to three households for a year.
U.S. Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., said the states face “a pressing need to work together to establish a path forward for water users in the region.”
The Colorado River provides water for more than 40 million people in Nevada, Arizona, California, Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. It also produces hydroelectric power and provides farmers with water to irrigate their crops.
“Nevada has led the nation on water conservation, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Congressional Colorado River Caucus to ensure our state’s allocation of this precious resource is protected in the long-term,” Titus said.
Nevada’s water allotment this year is 279,000 acre feet, a 7% cut from last year, although it traditionally has not used its full allocation. Nevada used 224,000 of its 300,000 acre-foot allotment last year.
Meanwhile, planning for conservation efforts starting in 2027 is already underway, officials said.
“The post-2026 process is a multiyear effort that will identify a range of alternatives and ultimately determine operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead and other water management actions for decades into the future,” the Bureau of Reclamation said.
