For decades, Las Vegas has relied on wastewater recycling and removing water-guzzling lawns to stretch and conserve its small Colorado River share. But even with proactive management, it could face significant challenges when it comes to future growth.
For decades, Las Vegas has relied on wastewater recycling and removing water-guzzling lawns to stretch and conserve its small Colorado River share. But even with proactive management, it could face significant challenges and uncertainties when it comes to future population growth.
Every time a shower or a faucet is turned on in Las Vegas, the water flowing down the drain is treated at wastewater plants and recycled. The treated water is discharged into the wash, which flows into Lake Mead, a declining Colorado River reservoir held back by the Hoover Dam. Once there, the water can be used for a second time, effectively increasing Nevada’s overall portfolio.
Unlike other states, Nevada has one main river user: Las Vegas. It is responsible for more than 90 percent of the state’s diversions, with additional water going to the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe, whose rights were recognized in a 1963 Supreme Court case, and other small water users. Dry cracked land that was once under water at Lake Mead Marina is visible on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2022. Negotiations over the Colorado River have become increasingly difficult for the seven states that rely on the shrinking river and its reservoirs, including Lake Mead, which is dropping to critically low levels.
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