The Bureau of Reclamation has issued its August 24-Month Study, which determined that the Lower Colorado River Basin will continue to be in a Tier 1 shortage for 2025. Despite a below- average runoff year, and less water flowing into Lake Mead from Lake Powell, the Lower Basin avoided deeper reductions due to extraordinary actions to reduce water use by parties in Arizona, California, Nevada and Mexico.
“The Lower Basin water users have truly sacrificed this year and it has paid off,” says Brenda Burman, CAP general manager. “Lake Mead is stable even though we had less water from Lake Powell and average snowpack in the Basin. Through mandatory reductions and extraordinary conservation and investments, we are demonstrating our ongoing commitment to protect all who rely on the Colorado River.”
In 2023, Lower Basin Colorado River consumptive use was the lowest since 1983. Arizona reduced its use by one-third (to 1.89 million acre-feet); California by nearly 16 percent (to 3.69 million acre-feet); and Nevada by more than 36 percent to 190,000 acre-feet.
The collective actions taken in the Lower Basin have stabilized Lake Mead. However, Lake Powell is still vulnerable because its elevation is reliant on annual runoff, which has been below average, and the consumptive use in the Upper Basin, which has been recently trending higher.
The Lower Basin has been voluntarily conserving water in Lake Mead since at least 2014:
- Mechanisms such as Intentionally Created Surplus and System Conservation;
- Mandatory 2007 Interim Guideline reductions and Drought Contingency Plan contributions that have been in place since 2020; and,
- A combination of both mandatory reductions and voluntary conservation, both compensated and uncompensated.
“When we say Lower Basin consumptive use is going down, it means there are real impacts to our communities,” says Burman. “The goal is to protect the entire Colorado River system, and Lower Basin partners are collaborating to do our part.”
KRA: Water Supply
Providing a reliable CAP water supply for the short- and long-term
