Tag Archive for: Southern Nevada Water Authority

Southwest Water Leaders Sign MOU to Explore Framework for Interstate Exchanges

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Today, the Bureau of Reclamation and agencies in California, Nevada and Arizona signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant to jointly explore new water supply solutions for the Colorado River Basin.

The MOU aims to improve long-term water management in the Colorado River Basin by advancing discussions to develop a framework that could allow for interstate water exchanges. The goal is to discuss a pathway that would allow agencies to partner across state borders on desalination, recycled water and other water supply projects that would benefit multiple states.

The MOU was signed by the Bureau of Reclamation, San Diego County Water Authority, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Southern Nevada Water Authority, the Arizona Department of Water Resources, Central Arizona Project and Salt River Project.

Interstate exchanges can be an important next step in successfully managing limited Colorado River supplies in the future by allowing shared financing of new supply projects that, through operational flexibility, could provide water to participating agencies when they need it most – taking advantage of variations in local hydrology across the Basin and other factors. Future water exchanges would use existing infrastructure and avoid costly new infrastructure without changing or reallocating existing rights or obligating parties to projects.

Long-term drought has reduced Colorado River system water storage to about 36% of capacity, and the combination of the lowest snowpack on record and record-breaking heat has further intensified drought conditions. These compounding factors create elevated risks to essential water and power infrastructure that supply water to more than 43 million people, underscoring the need for near-term actions to balance supply and demand.

What the signatories said:

“Next-generation strategies in the face of climate volatility must include interstate partnerships that deliver water where it’s needed most.  We appreciate the collaboration with the Bureau of Reclamation and all the other agencies involved. New ideas are challenging to implement, but it’s in everyone’s best interest to make this work.” – Dan Denham, General Manager, San Diego County Water Authority

“Across the Colorado River Basin, water users are developing new supply projects to reduce reliance on the river. But some of the larger projects require significant investment. The MOU signed today demonstrates our commitment to discussing how to develop flexible partnerships across borders to pool funding, advance projects, and allow water to be shared when and where it is needed most.” – Shivaji Deshmukh, General Manager, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

“As Colorado River conditions grow more challenging, regional partnerships like this are an essential tool to help ensure sustainable water supplies. This agreement allows us to explore forward-thinking, strategic investments that will strengthen water resilience in Southern Nevada and across the Lower Basin.” – John Entsminger, General Manager, Southern Nevada Water Authority

“This is an important step in addressing the goal of augmenting the water supplies of the Colorado River by creating a mechanism to deliver those supplies through an exchange using existing infrastructure. It represents the kind of innovation that Arizona and its Lower Basin partners believe is needed from all the Colorado River states to help stabilize the system in the long term.” – Tom Buschatzke, Director, Arizona Department of Water Resources

“This MOU is important because we are agreeing to discuss innovative ways to help each other and secure our future water supplies. When you have good partners, you can find collaborative opportunities that benefit all.” – Brenda Burman, General Manager, Central Arizona Project

“This agreement demonstrates the Lower Basin states’ commitment to work together to explore ways to supplement our water supplies as we continue to experience Colorado River shortages. SRP supports collaborative and strategic options and projects to develop and deliver resilient and reliable water for all of Central Arizona.” –  Leslie Meyers, Salt River Project Associate General Manager and Chief Water Resources Executive

CA Farmers Agree to Conserve 100,000 Acre-feet of Lake Mead Water in Exchange for Compensation

/in , , /by /Nevada Currentby Jenniffer Solis Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Southern California has agreed to conserve enough water in Lake Mead to support upwards of 300,000 single family homes for a year under an agreement struck with the federal government.

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Nevada, Arizona and California Commit to Record-Setting Conservation to Protect Colorado River

/in , , /by /Fox 5 Vegas by C.C. McCandless

The Southern Nevada Water Authority announced that the state will continue to collaborate with Arizona and California on a long-term sustainable plan for the stability of the Colorado River.

According to a media release, the Bureau of Reclamation is moving the process forward to develop new operating guidelines for the Colorado River that will be in effect after 2026. To that end, the Lower Colorado River Basin states— water users in Nevada, Arizona and California—are contributing record volumes of water to Lake Mead.

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How Nevada Uses More Than Its Tiny Share of the Colorado River Each Year

/in , /by /Las Vegas Review-Journalby Colton Lochhead

Nevada gets less than a 2 percent cut from the Colorado River’s waters, but the state actually uses far more water than that each year, all while staying well within its century-old legal water rights.

It’s all thanks to an extensive water recycling program in the Las Vegas Valley and something called “return flow credits,” which allow the state to pull extra water out of Lake Mead for every gallon of wastewater treated and returned to the reservoir via the Las Vegas Wash.

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Nevada Uses 8% Less Colorado River Water in 2022; States Continue Working Toward Massive Cuts

/in , , /by /8 News Nowby Greg Haas

Figures from the federal government show Nevada used 8% less water from the Colorado River in 2022 as conservation ramped up during one of the drought’s worst years.

Southern Nevada continues to make “tremendous progress” in water savings, according to John Entsminger, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority.

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States Miss Deadline to Address Colorado River Water Crisis, Pressure Builds on California

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James

The seven states that depend on the Colorado River have missed a Jan. 31 federal deadline for reaching a regionwide consensus on how to sharply reduce water use, raising the likelihood of more friction as the West grapples with how to take less supplies from the shrinking river.

In a bid to sway the process after contentious negotiations reached an impasse, six of the seven states gave the federal government a last-minute proposal outlining possible water cuts to help prevent reservoirs from falling to dangerously low levels, presenting a unified front while leaving out California, which uses the single largest share of the river.

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California is Lone Holdout in Colorado River Cuts Proposal

/in , /by /AP Newsby Felicia Fonseca and Suman Naishadham

Six Western states that rely on water from the Colorado River have agreed on a model to dramatically cut water use in the basin, months after the federal government called for action and an initial deadline passed.

California — with the largest allocation of water from the river — is the lone holdout. Officials said the state would release its own plan.

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In the West, Pressure to Count Water Lost to Evaporation

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Suman Naishadham

Exposed to the beating sun and hot dry air, more than 10% of the water carried by the Colorado River evaporates, leaks or spills as the 1,450-mile (2,334-kilometer) powerhouse of the West flows through the region’s dams, reservoirs and open-air canals.

For decades, key stewards of the river have ignored the massive water loss, instead allocating Arizona, California, Nevada and Mexico their share of the river without subtracting what’s evaporated.

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How Las Vegas Declared War on Thirsty Grass and Set an Example for the Desert Southwest

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Ian James

Fountains still shimmer opulently at casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, but lush carpets of grass are gradually disappearing along the streets of Sin City.

Despite its reputation for excess, the Mojave Desert metropolis has been factoring climate change into its water plans for years, declaring war on thirsty lawns, patrolling the streets for water wasters and preparing for worst-case scenarios on the Colorado River, which supplies 90% of the area’s water.

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Colorado River Water Managers Optimistic About Drought Plan as Deadline Looms

/in , , /by /Las Vegas Review-Journalby Colton Lochhead

Western water managers are optimistic that a deal to buoy the drought-stricken Colorado River can be pieced together in the waning days before a deadline set by the federal government rolls around next week.

The Bureau of Reclamation has given the seven states in the basin until the end of January to propose their own plan for voluntary reductions needed to prevent the river’s two main reservoirs from crashing, or risk the federal government moving forward with its own measures that would most likely result in mandated cuts.

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