Cuts pledged this year by California, Arizona and Nevada are likely to ease the threat of reservoirs declining to perilous lows — at least in the short term, the Biden administration said.
Current plans for reducing water use along the Colorado River should be sufficient to stave off risks of reservoirs reaching critically low levels over the next three years, according to a new analysis by the federal government.
The federal government analyzed the water-saving agreement proposed by the states as part of a review focused on updating river management rules for the next three years. The river’s flow has declined dramatically since 2000, and research has shown that global warming driven by the burning of fossil fuels has in the river’s flow this century has been caused by rising temperatures, and that for each additional 1 degree Celsius of warming, the river’s average flow is likely to
Federal officials have said some reductions will come by paying agricultural landowners and irrigation districts to conserve water. The details of those additional agreements are still being worked out.Parallel to the short-term efforts to shore up reservoir levels, the federal government is starting to weigh options for new long-term river management rules that will take effect starting in 2027.
“Providing the space and stability in the short term allows the basin to now bridge to the long-term conversation,” Touton said.Touton said if there is more snow and rain, that would certainly help. “But we’re not just counting on rain, in the long run, to save us.”
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