The San Diego County Water Authority and partners convened an expert panel conversation on the future of the Colorado River for a packed room of Citizen Water Academy alumni and special guests on Sept. 5. The conversation, co-sponsored by the San Diego Global Affairs Council and the Burnam Center for Community Advancement and titled “The Future of the Colorado River”, comes as the deadline for negotiations on new river allocations approaches at the end of this year.

Panelists for the event also included Sally Spener, Foreign Affairs Officer with the International Boundary and Water Commission; Dan Denham, General Manager with the San Diego County Water Authority; Tina Shields, Water Department Manager with the Imperial Irrigation District; Jordan Joaquin Member and Past President of the Quechan Indian Tribe of Fort Yuma Indian Reservation and Carlos A. de la Parra, Founding Partner, with Centro Luken de Estrategias en Agua y Medio Ambiente in Tijuana.

Panelists at the “Future of the Colorado River” event put on by the San Diego County Water Authority.

Water Authority Board Chair Nick Serrano kicked things off, recognizing both the tenuous conditions on the ground but also the opportunities ahead.

“This is truly an extraordinary, unprecedented time for so many reasons,” Serrano said. “I believe history will look back on this moment as one where Southern California came together to secure the future of the Colorado River — not just for ourselves but for all those who depend on it.”

The speakers weighed in on the past, present and future of the Colorado River – with an emphasis on ongoing negotiations among the basin states and other interest groups on how to share this precious resource and what that holds for the 40 million residents of seven states, two countries and tribal nations who depend on this lifeline.

From the impacts of climate change, the perspective of the tribes and Mexico and a deep discussion on where things stand with negotiations on water use from the Colorado River, this lively conversation was both a cautionary conversation about the obstacles ahead but also included notes of optimism about where things are headed.

“I do think there is hope and I think that hope comes from the sense of urgency we all have to embrace,” said Denham.