Tag Archive for: Western Water Supply

OPINION: No, American West, You Can’t Have Our Great Lakes Water

It is my hope to put to rest the mistaken belief that Great Lakes water, now, or at any point in the future, will be used to solve the water woes of the western United States. This is not going to happen. Westerners cannot have an honest discussion about their future until we dispel this myth once and for all.

Standing anywhere on Chicago’s famous lakefront, it is easy to imagine the freshwater resource in front of you is limitless. I have seen visitors to our city stare in awe at Lake Michigan and say, “You call this a lake? That’s an ocean!”

As Colorado River States Await Water Cuts, They Struggle to Find Agreement on Longer-Term Plans

The federal government is expected to announce water cuts soon that would affect some of the 40 million people reliant on the Colorado River, the powerhouse of the U.S. West. The Interior Department announces water availability for the coming year months in advance so Western cities, farmers and others can plan.

Behind the scenes, however, more elusive plans are being hashed out: how the basin will share water from the diminishing 1,450-mile (2,334-kilometer) river after 2026, when many current guidelines that govern it expire.