“Over the last 20 years, there’s been several years where there were opportunities to not take all the water from the system, but we still did,” said Christopher Kuzdas, a senior water program manager with the Environmental Defense Fund. “Everything blew up” in negotiations last week, Kyle Roerink, executive director at the Great Basin Water Network, told The Hill in an interview. The bureau will withhold about 21 percent of Arizona’s yearly water allocation next year, as well as 8 percent of Nevada’s.Ĭalifornia will not see its allocation affected, and no immediate changes are planned for the Upper Basin. In a news conference Tuesday, federal Bureau of Reclamation officials announced cuts to the yearly water allocation to Arizona and Nevada, as well as Mexico, which is also party to the compact. In June, the Interior Department gave the states 60 days to agree on a new allocation plan for an additional 15 percent reduction on top of expected federal reductions before the federal government stepped in. Meanwhile, the region is facing a 20-years-and-counting drought, the worst in centuries. If all Southern Nevadans followed the seasonal watering schedule, the community would save more water than is being cut under the tier two shortage level.The Colorado River basin serves seven states - an Upper Basin of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, and a lower one of Arizona, California and Nevada - and its waters are allocated based on the terms of a century-old agreement from when there was substantially more water in the river. However, only about 60 percent of single-family households comply with the seasonal watering schedule, which limits the number of days landscapes can be watered each season. Southern Nevada’s commitment to conservation has resulted in a 48 percent decline in per person water use per day since 2002, despite the addition of more than 750,000 new residents. Additionally, Nevadans can conserve water by replacing nonfunctional grass with drip-irrigated trees and plants, and by preventing and reporting water waste to local water utilities. Southern Nevadans can continue achieving conservation goals by complying with mandatory seasonal water restrictions to reduce outdoor water consumption. This includes expanding opportunities to increase water efficiency and incentivize conversion to low water-use crops in the agricultural sector, investing in water recycling projects, creating a grass reduction program for all Colorado River users, and creating new criteria in the Lower Basin to eliminate wastewater and antiquated water use practices. In a letter sent to DOI on Monday, Entsminger acknowledged the states' inability to finalize a plan and provided recommendations for the DOI to consider as they evaluate implementing unilateral action to reduce water use. The United States Department of Interior has also requested that the seven Colorado River states develop a plan by mid-August to reduce water use by 2 to 4 million acre-feet of water next year. “However, as climate change and aridification continue to impact water availability in the Colorado River Basin, we must be prepared as a community to intensify our conservation efforts to protect our economy and our standard of living in Southern Nevada.” “At least in the near term, we’re in a relatively enviable position,” said SNWA General Manager John Entsminger. The tier two water shortage will require Southern Nevada to forgo 25,000 of its 300,000 acre-foot allocation from Lake Mead, but according to a news release by the Southern Nevada Water Authority, last year’s water use was only 242,000 acre-feet.
Lake Mead is the source of 90 percent of the community’s supply and, although the reductions are considerable, local water conservation measures have already reduced water consumption by 26 percent.
In accordance with the 2007 Colorado River Shortage Guidelines, the declaration reduces Southern Nevada’s annual allocation of 300,000 acre-feet of water from Lake Mead by 25,000 acre-feet or about 8.1 billion gallons. LAS VEGAS (KTNV) - The federal government has officially stepped in and announced a tier two water reduction, limiting the amount of water Southern Nevada is allowed to withdraw from Lake Mead in 2023.
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