Current:Home > StocksArizona, Nevada and Mexico will lose same amount of Colorado River water next year as in 2024-VaTradeCoin
Arizona, Nevada and Mexico will lose same amount of Colorado River water next year as in 2024
lotradecoin futures trading platform View Date:2024-12-25 23:32:02
WASHINGTON (AP) — Arizona, Nevada and Mexico will continue to live with less water next year from the Colorado River after the U.S. government on Thursday announced water cuts that preserve the status quo. Long-term challenges remain for the 40 million people reliant on the imperiled river.
The 1,450-mile (2,334-kilometer) river is a lifeline for the U.S. West and supplies water to cities and farms in northern Mexico, too. It supports seven Western states, more than two dozen Native American tribes and irrigates millions of acres of farmland in the American West. It also produces hydropower used across the region.
Years of overuse combined with rising temperatures and drought have meant less water flows in the Colorado today than in decades past.
The Interior Department announces water availability for the coming year months in advance so that cities, farmers and others can plan. Officials do so based on water levels at Lake Mead, one of the river’s two main reservoirs that act as barometers of its health.
Based on those levels, Arizona will again lose 18% of its total Colorado River allocation, while Mexico’s goes down 5%. The reduction for Nevada — which receives far less water than Arizona, California or Mexico — will stay at 7%.
The cuts announced Thursday are in the same “Tier 1” category that were in effect this year and in 2022, when the first federal cutbacks on the Colorado River took effect and magnified the crisis on the river. Even deeper cuts followed in 2023. Farmers in Arizona were hit hardest by those cuts.
Heavier rains and other water-saving efforts by Arizona, California and Nevada somewhat improved the short-term outlook for Lake Mead and Lake Powell, which is upstream of Mead on the Utah-Arizona border.
Officials on Thursday said the two reservoirs were at 37% capacity.
They lauded the ongoing efforts by Arizona, California and Nevada to save more water, which are in effect until 2026. The federal government is paying water users in those states for much of that conservation. Meanwhile, states, tribes and others are negotiating how they will share water from the river after 2026, when many current guidelines governing the river expire.
Tom Buschatzke, director of Arizona’s Department of Water Resources and the state’s lead negotiator in those talks, said Thursday that Arizonans had “committed to incredible conservation ... to protect the Colorado River system.”
“Future conditions,” he added, “are likely to continue to force hard decisions.”
___
Associated Press reporter Amy Taxin contributed from Santa Ana, Calif.
___
The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment
veryGood! (3632)
Related
- Kylie Kelce's podcast 'Not Gonna Lie' tops Apple, Spotify less than a week after release
- 5 missing skiers found dead in Swiss Alps, search for 6th continues: We were trying the impossible
- New Hampshire AG’s office to play both offense and defense in youth center abuse trials
- Colleges give athletes a pass on sex crimes committed as minors
- Albertsons gives up on Kroger merger and sues the grocery chain for failing to secure deal
- Man fatally shoots girlfriend and her adult daughters during a domestic incident, deputies say
- NASA's Crew-7 returns to Earth in SpaceX Dragon from ISS mission 'benefitting humanity'
- Peter Navarro, former Trump White House adviser, ordered to report to federal prison by March 19
- 'Mary': How to stream, what biblical experts think about Netflix's new coming
- New York police crack down on vehicles avoiding tolls with fake license plates
Ranking
- KISS OF LIFE reflects on sold
- Kate’s photo scandal shows how hard it is for the UK monarchy to control its narrative
- Avalanche forecaster dies in snowslide while skiing on Oregon mountain
- The New York Times is fighting off Wordle look-alikes with copyright takedown notices
- Save 30% on the Perfect Spongelle Holiday Gifts That Make Every Day a Spa Day
- Fears of noncitizens voting prompt GOP state lawmakers in Missouri to propose driver’s license label
- Bachelor Nation’s Sydney Hightower Gives Birth, Welcomes First Baby With NFL Star Fred Warner
- 1000-Lb. Sisters’ Amy Slaton and Boyfriend Kevin Seemingly Break Up
Recommendation
-
Fewer U.S. grandparents are taking care of grandchildren, according to new data
-
Wife accused of killing UConn professor and hiding his body pleads guilty to manslaughter
-
Explosion destroys house in Pittsburgh area; no official word on any deaths, injuries
-
Restraining order against U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert’s ex-husband dropped at her request
-
See Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon's Twins Monroe and Moroccan Gift Her Flowers Onstage
-
Beyoncé's new album will be called ‘Act II: Cowboy Carter’
-
Nebraska woman used rewards card loophole for 7,000 gallons of free gas: Reports
-
Bachelor Nation’s Sydney Hightower Gives Birth, Welcomes First Baby With NFL Star Fred Warner
Tags
-
lotradecoin versus ftx comparison
lotradecoin exclusive trading tools
lotradecoin fundtransfers
lotradecoin availability
lotradecoin blockchain network compatibility
lotradecoin referral program benefits
lotradecoin trading account types
lotradecoin comparison
best strategies for lotradecoin trading