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California to store more rainwater as it vies with Arizona for Colorado River flow
After watching billions of gallons of rainwater wash away into the Pacific, California is taking advantage of extreme weather with a new approach: Let it settle back into the earth for use another day.
Scientists: Largest US reservoirs moving in right direction
Parts of California are under water, the Rocky Mountains are bracing for more snow, flood warnings are in place in Nevada, and water is being released from some Arizona reservoirs to make room for an expected bountiful spring runoff.
Paid not to farm? Expanded Colorado River program divides farm community
With water levels in Lake Powell and Lake Mead at record lows, federal officials are ready to spend tens of millions of dollars to get farmers and other water users to conserve this year and keep the reservoirs from falling farther.
Protect legacy of water conservation – reject SB1660
There is no sugar-coating it: Water supplies in Arizona are approaching crisis levels. We are at an inflection point in our history, where we must confront that the West’s reservoirs are sharply declining – and may never return to historic levels.
Water augmentation tested as Colorado River dwindles
While the lack of groundwater regulation plagues rural Arizona, there are proposed ways to create a larger supply in the region without depending on dwindling amounts from the Colorado River and groundwater.
Sonora governor criticizes desalination plan
The governor of Sonora, Mexico, is casting doubt on the proposal to put a desalination plant that would treat seawater in Mexico and pump it back to Arizona.
Pumping Mississippi River water west: solution or pipedream?
Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. Snowpacks in the Sierra Nevada Mountains have swelled to more than 200% of their normal size, and snowfall across the rest of the Colorado River Basin is trending above average, as well. While the much-needed water has improved conditions in the parched West, experts warn against claiming victory.
California releases its own plan for Colorado River cuts
California released a plan Tuesday detailing how Western states reliant on the Colorado River should save more water. It came a day after the six other states in the river basin made a competing proposal.
California is lone holdout in Colorado River cuts proposal
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.
Rain, snow won’t be enough to end West’s drought
The West has been slammed by wet weather this winter: An “atmospheric river” has pummeled California with weeks of heavy rain and the Rocky Mountains are getting buried with snow. That’s good news for the Colorado River, but climate scientists say the 40 million people who use the river’s water should take the good news with a grain of salt.
Recent snowfalls may slow water level decline at Lake Mead
Hefty snowfalls that fed the Colorado River in recent weeks may slow the water level decline of Lake Mead on the Nevada-Arizona border, according to some experts.
In the West, pressure to count water lost to evaporation
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.
