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


** Colorado River managers still have no plan for how to cut water use
------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday, September 20, 2022
Lake Mead's water levels are at a record low, Felton Davis Flickr ([link removed])

As drought continues in the West and reservoir levels approach critical thresholds ([link removed]) , Colorado River Basin water managers who gathered at a conference on Friday say they don't have a comprehensive solution ([link removed]) for the drying river system. The conference, hosted by the Colorado River District, comes one month after states missed a federal deadline ([link removed]) to propose ways to cut their use of water supplied by the Colorado River. Colorado River District General Manager Andy Mueller told attendees that scientists now recommend that water managers plan for the river to provide just 9 million acre-feet of water annually, a 25 percent cut from 2021.

"If we continue in the way we're operating now, if we don't reduce our demands, we're going to really see those reservoirs really hit a crisis," Mueller said ([link removed]) . "I'm not talking about in 20 years, I'm talking about in the next three or four years. We have a period of time here to change our use."
Under the terms of the 1922 Colorado River Compact, water from the Colorado River is divided equally between the Upper Basin states (Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) and the Lower Basin states (Arizona, California, and Nevada). Some tension between Upper and Lower Basin water managers was evident during the conference, with Upper Basin managers saying Lower Basin states need to take initiative ([link removed]) in water savings. While the Upper Basin states did propose a plan ([link removed]) earlier this year on how to keep more water in the river, it doesn’t include any mandatory water cuts. Mueller said that the state of Colorado is working on specific conservation plans, but doesn’t intend to release them until the Lower Basin states act. Lower Basin managers emphasized the water savings they
have already made and asked that states like Colorado act now and stop waiting for the Lower Basin to act.

One potential solution discussed at the conference is to ask the federal government to help account for the water that is lost through evaporation and transit when water moves from reservoirs to downstream states. Mueller suggests that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation should force states to account for that evaporation. However, that change alone will not achieve the level of cutbacks that are required, and both Upper and Lower Basin states will need to come up with their own plans for water cuts.
Quick hits


** Veterans stump in support of Camp Hale becoming new national monument
------------------------------------------------------------

Vail Daily ([link removed])


** The Green New Deal didn’t crash California’s grid
------------------------------------------------------------

High Country News ([link removed])


** Grand Canyon bison are headed to Great Plains tribal lands as North Rim herd is reduced
------------------------------------------------------------

Arizona Republic ([link removed])


** Researchers reveal the worst methane super-emitters in the U.S.
------------------------------------------------------------

Time ([link removed])


** Wildfires are burning away the West’s snow
------------------------------------------------------------

High Country News ([link removed])


** National parks are free Sept. 24 in celebration of National Public Lands Day
------------------------------------------------------------

Thrillist ([link removed]) | Washington Post ([link removed])


** Permitting overhaul in peril as funding deadline looms
------------------------------------------------------------

E&E News ([link removed])


** How an effort to reduce fossil fuel use led to another environmental problem: light pollution
------------------------------------------------------------

Los Angeles Times ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” All the soldiers in our army today are following in the historical footsteps of those who have gone before them. The 10th Mountain soldiers are no exception. The heritage, legacy, spirit and ethos of today’s 10th Mountain Division springs from its beginnings at Camp Hale.”
—Retired Major General Galen Jackman, Vail Daily ([link removed])
Picture this


** @ ([link removed]) USFWSRefuges ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
CAPTION CALL! What can we say about this river otter at Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge ([link removed] ([link removed]) )? Got a clever caption? We’ll name our favorite tomorrow. Photo Credit: Tom Koerner/USFWS

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Medium ([link removed])
** Instagram ([link removed])
Copyright © 2022 Center for Western Priorities, All rights reserved.
You've signed up to receive Look West updates.

Center for Western Priorities
1999 Broadway
Suite 520
Denver, CO 80202
USA
** View this on the web ([link removed])

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])