Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** How federal cuts to Colorado River water would affect each state
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Monday, April 17, 2023
Central Arizona Project canal; Onel5969, Wikimedia Commons ([link removed])
The Biden administration released two potential plans ([link removed]) last week to stabilize the Colorado River, which is dwindling due to climate change-driven drought as well as overuse by the seven states that rely on it for much of their water. The options are to either use the existing water priority system to make cuts or to cut the same percentage across the board.
Neither plan would affect ([link removed]) water deliveries to the Upper Basin states—Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Wyoming. That's because these states pull water directly from the river, as opposed to getting it from reservoirs like Lakes Powell and Mead, and because—in most years—they do not use the full 7.5 million acre feet appropriated to them by the Colorado River Compact.
In California, the priority-based proposal would benefit cities and farm districts ([link removed]) like the Imperial Valley. The valley would lose no additional water under this proposal based on its senior rights. California is worse off if cuts are spread out evenly among the Lower Basin states. As Lake Mead gets lower, California would have to give up more water, eventually adding up to about one-fifth of its allocation.
In Arizona, the Central Arizona Project, which delivers water to metropolitan Phoenix and Tucson, would be hard-hit ([link removed]) under the priority-based proposal. If the cuts are made based on the priority system, Arizona could lose nearly two-thirds of its total river water next year. If equal cuts are made across the board, Arizona would lose only about one-third of its water.
Since Nevada doesn’t use its full allocation of Colorado River water, it faces relatively small cuts ([link removed]) in either scenario.
States, Tribes, and other water users have until May 30 ([link removed]) to comment on the two options. Federal officials are expected to announce ([link removed]) a formal decision this summer.
Quick hits
** Nevada county overturns geothermal permit in Black Rock Desert
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Associated Press ([link removed]) | San Francisco Standard ([link removed]) | Reno Gazette Journal ([link removed])
** Babbitt: We have one last chance to save the Colorado River
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New York Times ([link removed])
** Utah’s Great Salt Lake almost disappeared. Unprecedented weather is bringing it back
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The Guardian ([link removed])
** The astounding origins of Chaco Canyon timber
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Sapiens ([link removed])
** Spills related to oil, gas drilling up in Colorado & New Mexico, down in Wyoming
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Boise State Public Radio ([link removed])
** Report finds Wyoming coal infrastructure can be ‘repurposed’
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WyoFile ([link removed])
** Haaland celebrates new era of conservation on trip to Nevada
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Associated Press ([link removed])
** Big-game hunting interest soars beyond Colorado’s capacity
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Denver Post ([link removed])
** Seven ways landowners block access to public lands—and what you can do about it
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Outdoor Life ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” I was struck by the power and presence of the ancestors in tribal communities who have prayed on, protected and drawn strength from this special place for thousands of years.”
—Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, Associated Press ([link removed])
Picture this
** @USFWS ([link removed])
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Have you seen any American kestrels lately? Look for these small falcons perched on wires, posts and even highway signs where they watch for prey.
📷 courtesy of Alan Schmierer.
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