The Biden administration is pushing to cut 2 to 4 million acre-feet in water usage, and is in negotiations with the seven states affected. This area gets less attention than California's Central Valley, the nation's leading producer of produce and nuts, which draws its water from rain and snow in the Sierra Mountains, or pumps it from shrinking underground aquifers. But we will not serve as an emergency reservoir for uncontrollable, unsustainable urban sprawl, Cardenas said. EL CENTRO, Calif. A few hundred farms in the southern tip of California, along the Mexican border, may hold the key to saving the drought-plagued Colorado River from collapse. But those plans, say members of Colorado's outdoor recreation, real estate, and tourism industries, jeopardize a $9 billion dollar economy that hinges on healthy rivers - and supports more . The situation has been compared to the energy markets of the late 1990s, in which firms like Enron made money from shortages (some of which, it turned out, traders engineered themselves). In 2021, water managers considered releasing even more water from Navajo Reservoir to help water levels in downstream reservoirs. Later, as the states negotiator on the Colorado River, he helped make it an official goal of the compact states. Plus, A Surprising Number Of Food And Beverage Classes In Boulder County. The past two years have also seen healthy winter snow accumulation in the Rockies only to have runoff levels into Lake Powell that were a fraction of normal, as terrain dried out by the warming climate absorbed more of the water before it can reach the reservoir. Sept. 14, 2022, at 10:00 a.m. Increasing Pressures on Colorado River Water in New Mexico. Demand for Colorado River water picked up in the late 1990s and early 2000s. A field of alfalfa, freshly cut, dries in the sun. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. Editing by Nick Macfie, Trump accuser defends rape claim after judge rejects Trump's mistrial request, Biden calls for meeting as US to run short of cash June 1, Biden urges Republicans take debt default off table, warns interest rates would jump, American Airlines pilots authorize a strike mandate, Donald Trump arrives in Scotland for short golfing trip, UK inflation expectations ease as BoE considers next rate hike, ACLU sues Montana House Speaker for silencing transgender legislator, Kuwait again dissolves reinstated parliament by decree, Bolsonaro steals show at Brazil's biggest farm fair. Farmers also could reduce the amount of land planted in crops, especially alfalfa and grasses, which get baled into hay to feed cattle or horses. Traders could exploit volatility, whether due to drought, failing infrastructure or government restrictions. Private investors would like to bring in or amplify existing elements of Wall Street for the water industry, such as futures markets and trading that occurs in milliseconds. The water flows will not add any more water to Lake Mead than otherwise scheduled for 2023, according to the feds. Cibola, Ariz., is one of the wrong places. Dan Charles for NPR Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. Californias agricultural water markets a mosaic of online exchanges connecting farmers and water brokers are considered a potential model for the West: fast, flexible and responsive to extreme weather. But the largest water user, California, did not join them an impasse that suggests the wrangling over how to conserve the dwindling water supply that serves 40 million people will continue in coming months. Who are the top five consumers of Colorado river? - Answers Dec. 13, 2022, at 6:19 a.m. Colorado River Water Users Convening Amid Crisis Concerns. "Six of the seven basin states are playing catch-up to reduce water use from the Colorado River, which is absolutely critically needed after 20 years of drought and the impacts of climate change," Moran told Reuters. The emergence of open markets could outpace the negotiations. These fields owe their existence to fortune-seeking land speculators and engineers who, starting in 1901, dug a canal to bring water to this valley from the Colorado River. Were not going to wreck our local economy so that they can continue to grow their urban economy.. Whats being done? Having a seat at the table means working with every tribe to learn their specific water rights and needs.. Beginning Monday . By design, the five-year process is ponderous and built to be consensus-driven, with an eye toward shared sacrifice. The Imperial Irrigation District draws enough water from the river each year to cover. Roughly 180,000 people, most of them Mexican-American, live here in towns that include El Centro, Calexico, and Brawley. What has happened in Australia should be a cautionary tale for America, Mr. Kells said. Investor interest in the river could redefine century-old rules for who controls one of the most valuable economic resources in the United States. It wasnt just the drought: Californias crops had shifted from low-value seasonal vegetables like lettuce and bell peppers to permanent non-staples, like almonds, that were so valuable that it was no longer economical for farmers to sell water to cities, even as prices spiked. Its the rural counties going up against big money., Grady Gammage Jr., a spokesman for Greenstone, said, In my view there is enough water both to sustain a significant agricultural economy on the river and to support urban growth in central Arizona.. The April selection for the Radio Bookclub is Go As A River by Colorado author Shelley Read. Obviously, its not going swimmingly, said Jeffrey Kightlinger, the former general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, a water provider that is a major player in the talks. The Western model is a sort of comprehensive, consensus-based public discussion, and its worked very well, said Bruce Babbitt, a former governor of Arizona and secretary of the interior during the Clinton administration. Thanks to the Colorado River, which meanders through town, Cibola is a verdant oasis that chatters at dusk with swooping birds. Marc Catlin, a third-generation farmer who represents western Colorado in the General Assembly, said, A farmers property is their 401(k).. Cardenas said the prospect of a 10 percent cut to the regions $5 billion agricultural economy would mean serious economic pain for a community that already suffers from high unemployment. Click here to see how reuse and recycling could fit in to the West's strategy to save the Colorado River. These farmers, in Imperial County, currently draw more water from the Colorado River than all of Arizona and Nevada combined. Copyright 2023 KVVU. But Colorado River and reservoir management was designed during a much wetter period. The Central Arizona Project, a 336-mile-long water delivery system, brings water from the Colorado River to Arizona's . Escambia River Electric Cooperative. In the Colorado River Basin as a whole, which services about 40 million people in seven states and is overtaxed to the point that it rarely ever reaches the ocean anymore, that number is 55%. Clay Electric Cooperative. Once criticized for being a profligate user of water, fast-growing Phoenix has taken some major steps including banking water in underground reservoirs, slashing per-capita use, and recycling wastewater in anticipation of the day when the flow from the Colorado River ends. A basinwide conservation plan had not materialized by the mid-August deadline. "You have a lot of leverage if you have a lot of water.". Sprinklers deliver vital Colorado River water to a field of celery in California's Imperial Valley. One, moving very rapidly, is climate change. US rivers and lakes are shrinking for a surprising reason: cows Felt drove me in his pickup to a wide spot in a two-lane highway where trucks towing horses and inflatable river rafts whizzed past. But the entire region must work together, Lpez said, to avoid more mandatory cuts. WAM and other investors could theoretically create their own reservoir accounts and let the water sit until its value was maximized. Agriculture all over the West required the development of irrigation infrastructure, such as dams and ditches, Mr. Libecap said. According to Porter, some legal experts believe that the federal Bureau of Reclamation has the authority simply to order a reduction in water deliveries from reservoirs like Lake Mead to agricultural irrigation districts. Who are the top 5 consumers of the water of the Colorado River? In the winter, 90% of vegetables consumed in both the US and Canada are grown with Colorado River water. Imperial County is already one of the poorest in California. Flows during the past 23-year period are the lowest in the past 120 years and (among) the lowest in more than 1,200 years, Bunk told the webinar audience. The Imperial Irrigation District draws enough water from the river each year to cover 470,000 acres with 5 feet of water. Theyre going to make big bucks off the water, and whos going to suffer? she said. Restoring the Colorado: Bringing New Life to a Stressed River His water district uses about 2.6 million acre-feet of water per year to irrigate more than 400,000 acres of farmland for alfalfa, grasses and other crops. Farmers could buy new, more water-efficient irrigation equipment. It has offered its own plan to conserve water. Florida Municipal Power Agency. (Joshua Lott/The Washington Post) For the second time in six months, states that depend on the Colorado River to sustain their farms and cities have failed to reach . In 2001, Pueblo West, a planned community 100 miles away, came calling. Lake Mead, seen here on April 3, has plummeted in recent years amid an epic drought. It lies below sea level, allowing water from the Colorado River to flow there by gravity alone. Close to 40 million people use water from the Colorado River. Her life changes forever when she meets Wilson Moon, a young drifter, displaced from his tribal land in the Four Corners region. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. The Evergreen State takes the top spot again in the U.S. News Best States ranking on the strength of its tech sector and other industries. Under existing Colorado River agreements, that condition means starting next year, Nevada will have its water allotment cut by 25,000 acre-feet (8 percent). SEATTLE, Wash., Feb 1 (Reuters) - The Colorado River, which provides drinking water to 40 million people in seven U.S. states, is drying up, straining a water distribution pact amid the worst drought in 12 centuries, exacerbated by climate change. Sarah Porter, who's director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University, says the Imperial Irrigation District is now at the center of these negotiations. Water Consumption Work at EROS Important Asset to Colorado River - USGS The amount of water being used far exceeds whats actually available. Lake Powell in Big Water, Utah. Thats exactly what we were hoping that our use of surface water would allow the aquifer to do, Morris said. hide caption. By the summer, the process is expected to clarify the federal governments legal authority to make unilateral cuts to states water allotments. FILE - A buoy sits high and dry on cracked earth previously under the waters of Lake Mead at the Lake Mead . As Colorados water commissioner, he piloted a demand-management program and was known for crisscrossing Colorados back roads to convince skeptical farmers of the benefits of the approach. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Selling the rights to a Rocky Mountain trout stream or a hayfield dating from the pioneer era to nonlocal interests, especially those seeking to turn a profit, has the potential to be seen as auctioning state patrimony. My fear is that the speculators are going to break it. The ultimate goal of this high-flow experiment is to move sand and sediment along the Colorado River. The water tower in El Centro, the county seat of Imperial County, notes a geographic fact that shapes this area's destiny. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. 151 Colorado firms on Inc. 5000 fastest-growing private companies list It should free him. Subsequently, the governments antitrust department started an inquiry. A Farmer, A Chef, An Advocate And A Pie Guy Discuss Local Food Systems. At the edges of Lake Mead, the Nation's largest reservoir, a "bathtub ring" of mineral deposits approximately 100 ft. high shows the drop in water level after years of drought along the Colorado River. In Colorado, which is both an agricultural state and an outdoor recreation magnet, water is not just critical to the economy but an emotional part of the states identity and a political third rail. Feds Will Cut States' Access to Colorado River Water Why do we need to take additional actions now when there was so much water through all these recent storms?. Officials fear complete doomsday scenario for drought-stricken Colorado River. Surge of Colorado River water reaches Lake Mead - ktla.com One draft plan that's circulating among irrigation districts proposes annual payments of $1,500 per acre almost $1.4 billion in total in exchange for cutting water use by roughly 20 percent on almost a million acres of farmland. LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) - Lake Mead will be one foot higher by the end of the week after the release of water from Glen Canyon into the Colorado River. If states, cities, big farms and utilities were able to buy water freely, especially across state lines, the allocations of the compact could be obviated and the governmental power to manage the fate of the river eroded. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs. Udall's projections for the Colorado River aren't a certainty, but if climate, drought and water conditions continue as expected over the next five years, the amount of water delivered from . A Florida ethics board has dismissed a complaint that allies of former President Donald Trump filed against Republican rival Gov. Mr. Kightlinger, of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, traces the recent private-investor interest in water to the 2015 crisis. Bunk said the two largest reservoirs on the river Lake Mead behind Hoover Dam on the Nevada-Arizona state line and Lake Powell formed by the Glen Canyon Dam on the Arizona-Utah line are at unprecedented low levels. The proposal lays out potential new cuts for the states of the Southwest that lie downstream from the major reservoirs Arizona, Nevada and California as well as Mexico, which has treaty rights to a portion of the rivers water. Strategies include fallowing fields and making irrigation more efficient. Stay informed daily on the latest news and advice on COVID-19 from the editors at U.S. News & World Report. Valued at $2 billion after 14 years in existence, Australias markets primarily facilitate trades in agricultural areas. The way the markets were set up left them open to being gamed.. Often, the best land in the West is not along rivers, so you needed to move water.. By the end of May, Lake Mead will reach 1,051 feet. Theres a problem of aridification. Access to it can make or break both cities and rural communities. 24, 2023 at 11:45 PM PDT. Driving across the expanse, where the temperature often hovers near 115 degrees, I found myself comforted by the sight of an oncoming eighteen-wheeler carrying bales of hay, which at least implied the existence of something living where I was headed. Native American tribes werent included and were referenced in one sentence: Nothing in this compact shall be construed as affecting the obligations of the United States of America to Indian tribes.. His great-grandfather came to the valley from Sweden in the 1920s. This led to domination by professional investors with no ownership of farmland, Mr. Kells said. In Era of Drought, Phoenix Prepares for a Future Without Colorado River What top five states have rivers? In the West, few issues carry the political charge of water. It lies below sea level, allowing water from the Colorado River to flow there by gravity alone. Irrigation canals that are currently simple ditches in the dirt could be lined with concrete, to prevent water from seeping into the ground. Just kind of a nightmare, Mr. More about the Colorado River - Colorado Public Radio Nevada, Arizona and Mexico will all receive less water from the Colorado River next year because of rapidly-declining reservoirs, the Interior Department announced on Aug. 16. As a result, water has turned into a financialized product like what happened to energy in the late 1990s, he said. Bureau officials use the image of pouring tea from one cup to another to describe how water from Rocky Mountain snowmelt is captured in Lake Powell, then released downriver through the Grand Canyon to Lake Mead. Beef cattle are the top agricultural product of Imperial County. Similar deals have been struck in the past, although none involved so much money. More frustrating for those trying to solve the Wests dire water problems, if water runs out, because of those generous rights granted a century ago, the metropolises will have to turn off their taps before the old farms. Stay informed daily on the latest news and advice on COVID-19 from the editors at U.S. News & World Report. James Eklund, legal counsel for Water Asset Management, favors a market-driven approach to water distribution in the West. hide caption. In 2015, California got just 5 percent of its average annual snowpack, the lowest in 500 years. Built in the 1980s, Pueblo West was growing too fast to keep up with its water needs, so it bought the ranch and its rights. The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. "And there's not enough time to litigate these issues," added Hayes, a former top climate aide to President Joe Biden. But if you know one tribe, you only know one tribe. The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) is a nonprofit public utility created in November 1934 by the Texas Legislature. This years meeting of water recipients begins Wednesday at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip. She is the sole surviving female in a family of troubled men. Another dry year has left the watershed that supplies 40 million people in the Southwest parched. Right now, we have legal and political mechanisms in place to prevent that from happening., He added, though, that the pressure of the drought could shift the terrain. Those who grow alfalfa in Southern Californias Imperial and Coachella valleys would keep their water before people in parts of Los Angeles. Ever since the late-2000s, the last time that water supplies in Colorado River reservoirs reached critically low levels, the biggest water users in Arizona, California, and Nevada have been stashing water in Lake Mead, in preparation for another emergency to come and in an attempt to avoid a catastrophic collapse of the region's water . The top 5 states are Mississippi, Missouri,. They would have bought it, turned it, flipped it, and theyd be gone.. The water tower in El Centro, the county seat of Imperial County, notes a geographic fact that shapes this area's destiny. Southern California water districts recently submitted a proposal to the federal government. The Imperial Valley is a place of jarring contrasts. Throughout the river basin, warnings have increased and measures have tightened markedly in 2022. Colorado River tributaries in New Mexico bring water to the alfalfa fields in the Four Corners and the forested hills of the Gila wilderness in the southwestern part of the state. The Colorado River waters our crops. What if it dries up? - Vox Because the Colorado River is so large, envisioning the local impacts of water transfers can be a challenge for decision makers, especially when the communities are as remote as Cibola. 30 water suppliers pledge to address Colorado River shortage - Los That could change as more tribes reach water rights settlements and build out infrastructure to use those rights. Its pretty tough right now.. It has offered its own plan to conserve water. That a lush hay farm had once been here seemed hard to believe. Theyre making water a commodity, said Regina Cobb, the Arizona assemblywoman who represents Cibola. We went harder and faster than anyone and let the market rip, said Stuart Kells, a professor at La Trobe Business School in Melbourne. Last month, 30 agencies that supply water to homes and businesses throughout the region joined the Las Vegas area in restricting the planting of decorative lawns that no one walks on. The interested players range from financial firms to university endowments to investor groups, including at least two in Colorado led by former governors. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)John Locher. The Kremlin is trying to kill Alexei Navalny. U.S. cities that receive river water include Denver, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Los Angeles and San Diego. Dan Charles for NPR In Australia, however, water markets have had unintended consequences. The Grand Valley Ditch, running through Grand Junction, Colo., diverts water from the Colorado River to irrigate farms. That is about 1 million acre-feet less than the three states are entitled to use under a legal compact that divides the Colorado River's waters. Rechanneling water from rural areas to thirsty growth spots like Queen Creek has long been handled by municipal water managers and utilities, but investors adept at sniffing out undervalued assets sense an opportunity. The proposal would result in about 2 million acre-feet of cuts the low end of what the federal government has asked for and would be largest for the biggest consumers of water: California and Arizona. Chaffee County is considered one of the hidden gems of the Rockies, a relatively unspoiled valley with a diverse economy in tourism as well as agriculture. Arizona city cuts off a neighborhoods water supply amid drought. Lake Mead to rise one foot by Sunday after federal high flow water release, Las Vegas police: Man shot in street in west valley, 1 dead, 2 hurt in southwest Las Vegas Valley crash, Heavy, black smoke, flames seen near Cheyenne, Lamb, 2 suspects face arson charges after setting fires at Las Vegas Strip hotels, Clark County in dire need of foster parents for teens; Heres how to help, I lost everything: Recovering addict shares story of hope, helping others in Las Vegas, City turns on water at splash pads at parks across Las Vegas. The Evergreen State takes the top spot again in the U.S. News Best States ranking on the strength of its tech sector and other industries. hide caption. The idea is, if you pay the farmers enough, theyll go away, said Brad Udall, a water and climate researcher at Colorado State University whose family have been lawmakers in the region for 60 years. IID laid claim to water from the Colorado River before cities like Phoenix and Tucson showed up. In April, water administrators in Southern California imposed a one-day-a-week outdoor watering limit on more than 6 million people. What are the top crops grown in Colorado? Instead, farmers are hoping for a deal in which the government will pay them to use less water. Published: Apr. A Denver-based insulated drinkware company ranked the highest of the 151 Colorado companies on Inc. magazine's 2020 list of the fastest-growing private companies in America. The entire series, including Afterhours at the Radio Bookclub, is available as a podcast. If nothing changes, within a few years, Lake Mead would drop to a level called "dead pool" and water would stop flowing through Hoover Dam. Clewiston Utilities. In September, Nasdaq and CME Group, the worlds largest derivatives marketplace, announced plans to open a futures market for California water, joining it with commodities like Brent crude oil and soybeans. BruMate, which was founded in 2015 by now 25-year-old Dylan Jacob and featured in Forbes magazine recently, sells insulated can coolers, tumblers and drinkware. 'The brink of disaster': 2023 is a critical year for the Colorado River What is the Colorado River? FILE - A buoy sits high and dry on cracked earth previously under the waters of Lake Mead at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area near Boulder City, Nev., on June 28, 2022. States come up with plan to save Colorado River water Its quite possible that there just wont be as much San Juan-Chama water available in the future because of drought and climate change.. Beef cattle are the top agricultural product of Imperial County. The markets have become a paradise for arbitrage. He compared the dynamic to California in the 1990s, where fires and outages were beneficial for traders because of price spikes and you saw Enron traders cheering on fires.. "There's been a bad crop in northern California. "Something will have to give," said Sharon Megdal, director of the University of Arizona's Water Resources Research Center. David Morris, the water utility spokesman for the city and county, said the Colorado River water has allowed the region to wean itself off of unsustainable groundwater pumping. Sandbars are important, according to the feds: they are places for people to camp, fish, and also protect important archaeological sites throughout the Grand Canyon and across the Colorado River. The Colorado River provides water for one out of every eight Americans for residential, indus-trial, mining, agricultural, and recreational needs. During the past two decades of drought, and particularly in recent years, the rivers flow has declined, but states continue to consume more than the river provides, based on a framework established a century ago. Alex Cardenas, the president of the board of directors of the Imperial Irrigation District, noted that the water rights among the farmers in his area of California near the border with Mexico predate the formation of the Bureau of Reclamation, which manages the river system. Know where your water comes from. Top 5 US Consumers California is the largest consumer of water in the US. In fact, it's 5 feet. The Colorado River Water Users Association conference, normally a largely academic three-day affair, comes at a time of growing concern about the river's future after more than two decades of record drought attributed to climate change.