Colorado River States Suggest Mediation As Water Supplies Near Crisis
Negotiators for some of the seven states competing for dwindling Colorado River water supplies say they’re disappointed in a federal plan to adopt only short-term fixes in the coming years, and they think going to mediation could help reach a longer-lasting agreement.
The Trump administration’s Bureau of Reclamation has said that, lacking a seven-state agreement to guide operations and cutbacks to arrest the loss of reservoir storage, it intends to create a 10-year “framework” with new rules to be imposed every two years. The lead negotiators for Colorado and Nevada appeared on stage at a June 5 conference and both said such a plan lacks the certainty that their water users need when deciding on investments.
