Tag Archive for: Colorado River

How Will a Second Trump Presidency Shape the Colorado River?

The people who will determine the future of the Colorado River said they do not anticipate major changes to their negotiation process as a result of former president Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

Multiple officials from states that use the Colorado River pointed to historical precedent and said that similar negotiations in the past were largely unaffected by turnover in presidential administrations. Historically, state leaders have written the particulars of river management rules, and the federal Bureau of Reclamation implements the states’ ideas.

One Issue will Decide Arizona’s Future. Nobody’s Campaigning on it.

The morning temperature is nearing 100 degrees Fahrenheit as Keith Seaman sweats beneath his bucket hat, walking door to door through the cookie-cutter blocks of a subdivision in Casa Grande, Arizona. Seaman, a Democrat who represents this Republican-leaning area in the state’s House of Representatives, is trying to retain a seat he won by a margin of around 600 votes just two years ago.

He wants to know what issues matter most to his constituents, but most of them don’t answer the door, or they say they’re too busy to talk. Those that do answer tend to mention standard campaign issues like rising prices and education — which Seaman, a former public school teacher, is only too happy to discuss.

Biden Administration Punts on Big Colorado River Move

The Biden administration has told Colorado River negotiators it no longer plans to issue its draft set of plans for managing the waterway in December, leaving the next major move in the battle over the West’s most important river to the next president.

The federal plans for the waterway are of increasing importance since the seven states that share it are deadlocked over new rules to govern the river after 2026. The Interior Department’s Bureau of Reclamation had said for months that it intended to issue them as part of a draft environmental impact statement at the end of the year.

Column: Something is Rotten in SoCal’s Metropolitan Water District

There are few government agencies more central to daily life in Los Angeles than the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which spends billions of dollars each year ensuring that 19 million people have enough to drink, in part by importing hundreds of billions of gallons from the Colorado River and Northern California.

There are also few agencies more prone to bitter power struggles.

As California Farms Use Less Colorado River Water, Worries Grow Over Shrinking Salton Sea

It was 111 degrees when Mark McBroom stepped from his air-conditioned pickup and onto a dry alfalfa field. Remnants of desiccated hay crunched underfoot, and the sun-baked soil was fragmented with deep cracks.

McBroom and other Imperial Valley farmers agreed to leave many hay fields unwatered for seven weeks this year in exchange for cash payments from a federally funded program designed to alleviate the water shortage on the Colorado River.

Biden Administration Inks Deals to Bring Major Relief to Colorado River’s Biggest Reservoir

The Biden administration and southwestern Colorado River users have partnered on a large-scale conservation effort poised to bring significant relief to the region’s key reservoir, officials announced Wednesday.

The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation and Southern California stakeholders signed two short-term “Bucket 1” agreements — funded by the Inflation Reduction Act — to conserve more than 717,000 acre-feet of water by 2026.

Can Eating Less Beef and Dairy Help Save the Colorado River?

Western states and the federal government face a looming 2026 deadline to divvy up falling water levels in the Colorado River basin. As overuse and climate change stretch the river thin, research suggests relatively small shifts in global eating patterns could save enough water to fend off steeper cuts for cities and agriculture — and help reduce climate pollution.

Nearly half — 46% — of all the water drawn from the Colorado River goes to growing feed for beef and dairy cows, according to a recent study published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment. It’s the most detailed analysis yet of how the river’s water is used.

Much of the Colorado River’s Water goes to Feed Cows. How Changing your Diet Could Help

Western states and the federal government face a looming 2026 deadline to divvy up falling water levels in the Colorado River basin. As overuse and climate change stretch the river thin, research suggests relatively small shifts in global eating patterns could save enough water to fend off steeper cuts for cities and agriculture — and help reduce climate pollution.

Nearly half — 46% — of all the water drawn from the Colorado River goes to growing feed for beef and dairy cows, according to a recent study published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment. It’s the most detailed analysis yet of how the river’s water is used.

Leaders from the Metropolitan Water District join SDCWA board Chair, Secretary and General Manager at the August 2024 Board meeting.

Water Authority Welcomes MWD Chair to Discuss Regional Water Future

On Thursday, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) Chairman Adán Ortega and Interim General Manager Deven Upadhyay addressed collaboration between two of the largest wholesale water agencies in Southern California in light of MWD’s major long-term planning effort. This process aims to chart a course for meeting Southern California’s water resource management needs while rising to the challenges of a changing climate and maintaining its financial sustainability.

Speaking to the Board of the San Diego County Water Authority, Ortega praised the work of Water Authority Board Chair Mel Katz, Vice Chair Nick Serrano and General Manager Dan Denham during an era of change at both agencies.

“Through your leadership, barriers between our member agencies are coming down opening new possibilities for greater interdependence in our region that can result in greater reliability, value for our residents, and fiscal health for the entire water supply chain,” Ortega said.

Members of the Metropolitan Water District join the August 2024 SDCWA Board meeting for a robust discussion.

This spring, Katz and Denham spoke to the MWD Board about growing the agencies’ relationship based on water security, affordability and mutual benefits.

Ortega touched on similar themes regarding MWD’s ongoing effort to prepare for a changing climate over the next century via its Climate Adaptation Master Plan for Water effort. MWD is trying to chart a course forward with its 26 member agencies that meets the needs of the region while keeping water affordable all in the face of uncertainties caused by the changing climate. Through this process, MWD will consider potential multi-billion-dollar supply projects.

Ortega said the work of the San Diego region’s delegates to the MWD Board have been crucial for helping to chart Southern California’s water future. He thanked Director Tim Smith for leading MWD’s Finance and Asset Management Committee in implementing a two-year budget that was approved without opposition ; Director Marty Miller for his efforts to ensure financial accountability; MWD Secretary Lois Fong-Sakai for establishing a tone of civility at the MWD Board; and MWD Vice Chair Gail Goldberg for her work on MWD’s complex climate adaptation plan.

“Together, during the last two years we have made great progress in steps that are modernizing Metropolitan in the task of climate adaptation,” Ortega said.

US Plans to Limit Water Usage from Colorado River

The U.S. government plans to reduce the amount of Colorado River water several states are permitted to use next year.

The river supplies water to seven Western states, more than 20 Native American tribes, and two states in Mexico. Those states and the country of Mexico are also considering plans for how to share the water after 2026. That is when many current rules and agreements about the use of Colorado River water will come to an end.