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As the historic Western drought pushes Lake Mead and Lake Powell to record lows, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced yesterday the water shortages along the Colorado River had passed a dire threshold for the first time that will require unprecedented cuts to water use in Arizona and Nevada.
According to a new projection from the Department of the Interior, Lake Mead's water level will be below 1,050 feet by January 2023, the threshold for triggering a Tier 2 shortage. This means Arizona will lose nearly 21% from its annual Colorado River water allocation, Nevada will lose 8% of its allocation, and Mexico will lose 7%. California would not face any cuts unless Lake Mead falls to 1,045 feet, about 2 feet less than the 1,047-foot level it is predicted to reach in January, 2023.
Notably, the cuts announced yesterday only apply to the lower basin states, though the Interior Department could still order cuts from the upper basin states of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming to meet the system-wide water use reduction target of 2 to 4 million acre-feet annually to avoid a collapse of the entire Colorado River system.
While declining to specify where and how further cuts must be made by the states, the announcement from the federal government underscored both how dire drought conditions have become in the Colorado River basin and the challenge of getting competing states to cut vital water supplies that sustain cities, agriculture, and hydropower for millions of people living in the Southwest.
"Every sector in every state has a responsibility to ensure that water is used with maximum efficiency. In order to avoid a catastrophic collapse of the Colorado River System and a future of uncertainty and conflict, water use in the Basin must be reduced," Interior's assistant secretary for water and science Tanya Trujillo said in a statement.
The U.S. finally has a law to tackle climate change
President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law yesterday, telling a room full of supporters at the signing ceremony at the White House, "This bill is the biggest step forward on climate ever." The bill is certainly the most significant climate investment made by the U.S. government to date, containing $369 billion in funding for clean energy and electric vehicle tax breaks, domestic manufacturing of batteries and solar panels, and pollution reduction measures. The provisions in the bill are intended to push American consumers and industry away from reliance on fossil fuels, penalize fossil fuel companies for excess emissions of methane, and inject needed funds into pollution cleanup. "This law finally delivers on promises Washington has made for decades to the American people," Biden said.
With the signing of the Inflation Reduction Act, President Biden has finalized 55 new environmental policies since taking office, while taking action to overturn three-quarters of Trump's environmental policies. However, more work remains to reform the oil and gas leasing system, including holding companies accountable for cleanup costs. In addition, President Biden should rededicate himself to his America the Beautiful initiative to protect nature. "He must use every tool at his disposal, including the Antiquities Act, to protect new national monuments and conservation areas across America,” said Center for Western Priorities executive director Jennifer Rokala.
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The system is approaching a tipping point, and without action we cannot protect the system and the millions of Americans who rely on this critical resource. Protecting the system means protecting the people of the American West.”
