Officials say Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming must figure out how to use 15% less water
of barely one-quarter its 28.9m acre-feet capacity, is threatening the survival of the crucial river basin.
Lake Powell’s water surface elevation is projected to be at 3,522ft, only 32ft from the minimum needed to generate electricity from hydroelectric operations. “There are a lot of different interests at loggerheads. And there’s a lot to overcome, and there’s a lot of animosity,” said Kyle Roerink, executive director of the Great Basin Water Network,The bureau must now figure the next steps reclamation bureau commissioner Camille Touton can take after the mid-August deadline has passed for the seven Colorado river states to reduce water use by 25%.