Western Water

A U.S. Congress bill focuses on infrastructure. Also, a "shared vision" statement from tribes that live in the Colorado River basin and conservation groups focuses on the environmental issues around water access and aims to give tribes a greater voice.

The Colorado River and the Snake River rank Nos. 1 and 2 on a conservation group's list of the 10 most endangered rivers in the country.

Lake Powell is is strained by more than two decades of drought, and its water levels are dipping dangerously low. The reservoir recently passed an important threshold when water levels went below 3,525 feet — the last major milestone before a threat to hydropower generation at the Glen Canyon Dam. What's next for the nation's second-largest reservoir?

Year by year, Rocky Mountain snowpack is shrinking, slowly exhibiting the sting of a warming climate. The way we measure the snow is changing too, as a shifting baseline for what counts as “average” paints a somewhat deceptive picture of how much snow is stored at high altitude.

Tribes, including many of those in the Colorado River basin, have some of the oldest water rights in the region, but often lack the infrastructure to use their full allotments. The new federal money is designed to fund the construction of reservoirs, pumping stations and clean drinking water systems that help tribes use more of the water they’re owed.

Since water levels in Lake Mead hit historic lows last year, California, Nevada and Arizona water managers will start paying irrigators to use less water. This initiative is part of the new 500+ Plan to help return 500,000 acre-feet of water to the reservoir.

In Arizona, fields of crops and a growing sprawl of suburban homes mean a increased demand for water in the middle of the desert. Meeting that demand includes drawing from massive stores of water in underground aquifers. But some experts say groundwater is overtaxed, and shouldn’t be seen as a long-term solution for a region where the water supply is expected to shrink in the decades to come.

Nancy Caywood’s Pinal County farm should have a full field of alfalfa, but since the irrigation district shut off her water because of drought, her fields are empty and dry.

Water agencies from Arizona, Nevada, California and the federal government agreed to a multimillion dollar plan to keep more water in Lake Mead. The deal was signed at the Colorado River Water Users Association conference in Las Vegas.

“Anything that has to do with water, we’ve been totally blocked out,” said Christopher Tabbee of the Ute Indian Tribe. “We’ve never been consulted on any decisions.”