Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** As deadline looms, nothing but bad options for the Colorado River
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Monday, August 15, 2022
Satellite image of the Colorado River flowing into Lake Mead. Source: NASA Earth Observatory ([link removed])

Facing the worst drought in the last 1,200 years ([link removed]) , the seven Western states that rely on the Colorado River are running short on time to determine a viable path forward before the federal government steps in and makes cuts to water use for them. States have until August 16 to come up with a plan to conserve as much as a third of the river’s flows ([link removed]) .

In a congressional hearing in June, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Touton issued the Biden administration’s ultimatum ([link removed]) : Develop a plan to save 2 to 4 million acre-feet of water in 2023 ([link removed]) or the federal government will step in. This is the amount officials believe is necessary to keep Lake Powell, a key reservoir along the Arizona-Utah border, from reaching disastrously low levels next year.

Climate change has diminished the river’s flows roughly 20 percent in the past two decades ([link removed]) , and scientists predict they will shrink nearly 10 percent more with each additional degree of temperature rise. Despite the dire warnings, states are struggling to agree on a plan for reducing their water use, leaving the Biden administration with the politically perilous choice of stepping in to enforce cuts. The cost of inaction ([link removed]) could be catastrophic in the form of loss of hydropower capacity, highly productive farmland drying up, significant species loss, and a Grand Canyon with no water flowing through it.

John Fleck, a water policy professor at the University of New Mexico said ([link removed]) , “I don’t see anything that’s not a risk. It’s all bad options at this point.”


** "The Landscape" podcast survey
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Quick hits


** Judge revives coal leasing ban on federal lands
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Associated Press ([link removed]) | The Hill ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])


** All bad options for dealing with the Colorado River water and power crisis
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Politico ([link removed]) | Axios ([link removed]) | Colorado Politics ([link removed])


** Inflation Reduction Act invests in key ally to fight climate change: nature
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Washington Post ([link removed])


** Why are scientists pumping a potent greenhouse gas into streams on public lands?
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NPR ([link removed])


** Court orders BLM to pause oil and gas leasing on more than 2 million acres in Colorado
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Reuters ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])


** Spending time outdoors offers lots of "Vitamin N" to improve mental and physical health
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Colorado Sun ([link removed])


** Pros and cons for New Mexico oil and gas producers, environmentalists in Inflation Reduction Act
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Santa Fe New Mexican ([link removed])


** Arches National Park had long lines, now it has fewer visitors—are reservations working?
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” We can actually get a big bang for our buck by addressing climate solutions that also address the nature crisis. Natural climate solutions are not a substitute for decarbonizing our economy and energy sector. But it’s a complement so that we can hit more emissions reductions than we could otherwise.”
—Tom Cors, director of North America policy and government relations at The Nature Conservancy ([link removed])
Picture this


** @Interior ([link removed])
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Big Southern Butte is one of the largest volcanic domes in the world but, at 300,000 years old, it is also one of the youngest. Hikers who trek to the 7,550-foot-high summit are rewarded with spectacular panoramic views of Idaho. Photo by Devin Englestead, @BLMIdaho ([link removed])

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