Water levels in the nation’s second-largest reservoir dropped to a new record low, raising concerns that major changes are needed for water use in seven states.
. It is also a key part of the Colorado River Basin system, which supplies water to more than 40 million people. As of last week, its water levels fell to 3,522 feet above sea level, which is the lowest seen since the structure was filled in the 1960s. It’s now just 22 percent full, and unprecedented cuts in states’ water usage are necessary to avoid dire consequences.
“There’s too little supply and too much demand,” said Brad Udall, a water and climate scientist at Colorado State University. “Ultimately, I think what we’re going to see here is some major rewriting of Western water law.”“We’re seeing a collision right now between 19th century water law, 20th century infrastructure and 21st century population and climate change,” Udall added. “And how this works out is anybody’s guess.
and endangered the Lake Powell reservoir and its Glen Canyon dam. If the reservoir drops to 3,490 feet, the dam may be unable to generate hydropower. “We're 32 feet above where problems occur. And we've had years, recently, where we've lost 50 feet or more of reservoir volume,” Udall said. “We're one bad year away from reaching the point where we can't generate hydropower. That's the first worry here.”
At 3,370 feet, the reservoir becomes a “dead pool,” meaning water may be unable to flow downstream at all, cutting states off. “Lake Powell water is about a quarter of the water in the Los Angeles Basin. It supplies water to 90 percent of people in Las Vegas. It supplies water to about half of Phoenix. It supplies water that produces most of your winter vegetables,” Udall said.
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