Federal government announces first-ever water shortage in Lake Mead, Colorado River
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced the first shortage declaration for Lake Mead and the lower Colorado River Basin in its history, triggering cuts to individual states' water allocations beginning in January.
After an inordinately dry spring, the river's Upper Basin saw runoff into Lake Powell that was just over a quarter of average runoff. Projected rates for unregulated inflow into Lake Powell, that is, the amount that without storage behind Glen Canyon dam would have flowed into Lake Mead, is around 32 percent of the average.
Overall, the bureau said, total system storage for the Colorado River at 40 percent capacity, a decline of 49 percent from this point in 2020.
"Like much of the West, and across our connected basins, the Colorado River is facing unprecedented and accelerating challenges," Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Tanya Trujillo said in a statement Monday. "The only way to address these challenges and climate change is to utilize the best available science and to work cooperatively across the landscapes and communities that rely on the Colorado River. That is precisely the focus of the White House Interagency Drought Working Group-a multi-agency partnership created to collaborate with States, Tribes, farmers and communities impacted by drought and climate change to build and enhance regional resilience."
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