US dedicates $60 million to saving water along the Rio Grande as flows shrink and demands grow
7 months, 1 week ago

US dedicates $60 million to saving water along the Rio Grande as flows shrink and demands grow

Hindustan Times  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The U.S. government is dedicating $60 million over the next few years to projects along the Rio Grande in southern New Mexico and West Texas to make the river more resilient in the face of climate change and growing demands. “When drought conditions like this strike, we know it doesn’t just impact one community, it affects all of us,” she said, pointing to the importance of investing in water projects throughout the basin. U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a New Mexico Democrat, said improving sustainability along the Rio Grande will help the state meets obligations under a decades-old compact to deliver water downstream to Texas and ultimately Mexico. Irrigation districts in southern New Mexico and El Paso, Texas, will work with the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to develop projects that will benefit the river and endangered species that inhabit the basin.

Water West New Mexico Colorado River Haaland Rio Grande Irrigation Demands Southern New Mexico Mexico Texas  projects  mexico  texas  shrink  dedicates  grande  flows  irrigation  demands  river  saving  million  water  grow  haaland  rio  officials

History of this topic

U.S.-Mexico water agreement might bring relief to parched South Texas
1 month, 1 week ago

U.S.-Mexico water agreement might bring relief to parched South Texas

Associated Press  

MCALLEN, Texas — The U.S. and Mexico agreed to amend a 1944 water treaty, which might bring some relief to South Texas farmers struggling with scarce water. Under the 1944 international treaty, Mexico must deliver 1,750,000 acre-feet of water to the U.S. from six tributaries every five years, or an average of 350,000 every year. “The last thirty years of …

Mexico and US reach agreement to address Mexico’s habit of falling behind in water-sharing payments
1 month, 2 weeks ago

Mexico and US reach agreement to address Mexico’s habit of falling behind in water-sharing payments

Associated Press  

MEXICO CITY — Mexico and the U.S. said they reached an agreement they hope will address Mexico’s habit of falling behind on water-sharing payments in the Rio Bravo watershed, also known as the Rio Grande. The agreement announced Saturday provides Mexico with tools and flexibility to deliver water earlier in a five-year cycle under the 1944 U.S.-Mexico water treaty, according …

Arizona, Nevada and Mexico will lose same amount of Colorado River water next year as in 2024
4 months, 1 week ago

Arizona, Nevada and Mexico will lose same amount of Colorado River water next year as in 2024

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — 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. 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 …

Old pipes cause Texas cities to lose tens of billions of gallons of water each year
5 months, 2 weeks ago

Old pipes cause Texas cities to lose tens of billions of gallons of water each year

Raw Story  

This article was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. Texas’ most populous cities lost roughly 88 billion gallons of water last year because of aging water infrastructure and extreme heat, costing them millions of dollars and straining the …

US dedicates $60 million to saving water along the Rio Grande as flows shrink and demands grow
7 months, 1 week ago

US dedicates $60 million to saving water along the Rio Grande as flows shrink and demands grow

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The U.S. government is dedicating $60 million over the next few years to projects along the Rio Grande in southern New Mexico and West Texas to make the river more resilient in the face of climate change and growing demands. “When drought conditions like this strike, we know it doesn’t just impact one community, it affects all …

‘We can do better’: Western states divided over long-term plans for Colorado River water
9 months, 2 weeks ago

‘We can do better’: Western states divided over long-term plans for Colorado River water

LA Times  

With climate change compounding the strains on the Colorado River, seven Western states are starting to consider long-term plans for reducing water use to prevent the river’s reservoirs from reaching critically low levels in the years to come. In one camp, the three states in the river’s lower basin — California, Arizona and Nevada — say their approach would share …

Risks ease for Colorado River reservoirs after wet winter, but long-term challenges loom
9 months, 2 weeks ago

Risks ease for Colorado River reservoirs after wet winter, but long-term challenges loom

LA Times  

After a wet year and a push to conserve water in the Southwest, federal officials say the risk of the Colorado River’s reservoirs declining to critically low levels has substantially eased for the next couple of years. Touton called it a significant milestone, saying the Biden administration has successfully “staved off the immediate possibility of the Colorado River system’s reservoirs …

New Mexico governor proposes $500M to treat fracking wastewater
1 year ago

New Mexico governor proposes $500M to treat fracking wastewater

Associated Press  

SANTA FE, N.M. — New Mexico would underwrite development of a strategic new source of water by buying treated water that originates from the used, salty byproducts of oil and natural gas drilling, and help preserve its freshwater aquifers in the process, under a proposal from the state’s Democratic governor. Michelle Lujan Grisham, announced Tuesday from the international climate conference …

Federal officials say plan for water cuts from 3 Western states is enough to protect Colorado River
1 year, 1 month ago

Federal officials say plan for water cuts from 3 Western states is enough to protect Colorado River

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Federal officials said Wednesday that conditions have improved on the Colorado River to the point that a plan by California, Arizona and Nevada to voluntarily reduce water use should help keep the river basin on stable footing for the next few years. The U.S. Department of the Interior said in a statement that the risk of reaching …

Feds say Colorado River water cuts are sufficient to stave off immediate risks
1 year, 1 month ago

Feds say Colorado River water cuts are sufficient to stave off immediate risks

LA Times  

Current plans for reducing water use along the Colorado River should be sufficient to stave off the risk of reservoirs reaching critically low levels over the next three years, according to a new analysis by the federal government. Deputy Interior Secretary Tommy Beaudreau said the ongoing conservation efforts by states in the Colorado River Basin have helped ease the immediate …

New Mexico lawmakers question fallowing as way to reduce water use along the Rio Grande
1 year, 5 months ago

New Mexico lawmakers question fallowing as way to reduce water use along the Rio Grande

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Some New Mexico lawmakers are warning that leaving farmland unplanted along one of North America’s longest rivers won’t be a long-term answer to ensuring Texas gets its share of the Rio Grande under a pending settlement that would end a yearslong fight over the river’s management. State Sen. Joseph Cervantes, a Democrat from Las Cruces, argued that …

Phoenix Is Dangerously Close to a Water Crisis. Are These Old Ideas Solutions?
1 year, 6 months ago

Phoenix Is Dangerously Close to a Water Crisis. Are These Old Ideas Solutions?

Slate  

This story was originally published by High Country News and has been republished here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration. Recently, however, while I was digging through my digital archives—files I’ve saved from past reporting projects—I ran into an old report from 2008 put out by Arizona State University’s Morrison Institute for Public Policy. But the authors distill many …

Breakthrough proposal would aid drought-stricken Colorado River as 3 Western states offer cuts
1 year, 7 months ago

Breakthrough proposal would aid drought-stricken Colorado River as 3 Western states offer cuts

Associated Press  

LAS VEGAS — Arizona, Nevada and California said Monday they’re willing to cut back on their use of the dwindling Colorado River in exchange for money from the federal government -- and to avoid forced cuts as drought threatens the key water supply for the U.S. West. Though adoption of the plan isn’t certain, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille …

Breakthrough Colorado River deal reached, outlining big water cuts for three years
1 year, 7 months ago

Breakthrough Colorado River deal reached, outlining big water cuts for three years

LA Times  

A “bathtub ring” stands far above the waterline around Lake Powell on April 15. The consensus reached among the states will “protect the Colorado River system for the duration of the current guidelines,” said JB Hamby, chair of California’s Colorado River Board. Gavin Newsom said that California has “stepped up to make significant cuts to water usage,” and that the …

Tribe, US officials reach deal to save Colorado River water
1 year, 8 months ago

Tribe, US officials reach deal to save Colorado River water

Associated Press  

PHOENIX — A Native American tribe in Arizona reached a deal Thursday with the U.S. government not to use some of its Colorado River water rights in return for $150 million and funding for a pipeline project. Officials termed it “compensated conservation.” It’s part of a broader effort to get states that rely on the Colorado River to substantially lessen …

Drought over? Spring outlook finds relief -- and flood risk
1 year, 9 months ago

Drought over? Spring outlook finds relief -- and flood risk

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Record snowfall and rain have helped to loosen drought’s grip on parts of the western U.S. as national forecasters and climate experts warned Thursday that some areas should expect more flooding as the snow begins to melt. Paul Miller, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service’s Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, said that sounds like a lot …

Scientists: Largest US reservoirs moving in right direction
1 year, 9 months ago

Scientists: Largest US reservoirs moving in right direction

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “We’re definitely going in the right direction, but we …

In dry West, farmers balk at idling land to save water
1 year, 9 months ago

In dry West, farmers balk at idling land to save water

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — Tom Brundy, an alfalfa grower in California’s Imperial Valley, thinks farmers reliant on the shrinking Colorado River can do more to save water and use it more efficiently. “Given the volume of water that is used by agriculture in the Colorado River system, you can’t stabilize the system without reductions in agriculture,” said Tom Buschatzke, director of the …

How the Colorado River crisis affects hydropower.
1 year, 10 months ago

How the Colorado River crisis affects hydropower.

Slate  

The Colorado River, which allows the desert to sustain itself and powers millions of American homes, is currently engaged in the fight of its life. The Hoover Dam at Lake Mead and the Glen Canyon Dam at Lake Powell provide power for approximately 4 million Americans in the seven basin states. Despite these concerns, hydropower makes up almost one-third of …

At the heart of Colorado River crisis, the mighty ‘Law of the River’ holds sway
1 year, 10 months ago

At the heart of Colorado River crisis, the mighty ‘Law of the River’ holds sway

LA Times  

The Colorado River cuts through Marle Canyon in the Navajo Nation en route to the Grand Canyon. But as California argues most strongly for strict adherence to this system of water apportionment, the other states say it makes little sense when the river’s largest reservoir, Lake Mead, continues to decline toward “dead pool” level, which would effectively cut off the …

California is alone in battle over Colorado River water cuts
1 year, 10 months ago

California is alone in battle over Colorado River water cuts

LA Times  

After a key deadline passed this week without an agreement on how to address the Colorado River’s crisis, California is now sharply at odds with six other states over how to take less water from the shrinking river. “California is trying to play its best card, which is, ‘The law is on our side.’ And the other six states are …

Battling to avoid massive water cuts, California offers proposal on Colorado River crisis
1 year, 10 months ago

Battling to avoid massive water cuts, California offers proposal on Colorado River crisis

LA Times  

California has given the federal government its own proposal for making cuts in Colorado River water use, saying a plan offered by six other states would disproportionately burden farms and cities in Southern California. In the proposal letter, J.B. Hamby, chair of California’s Colorado River Board, said the state’s alternative “provides a realistic and implementable framework to address reduced inflows …

California is lone holdout in Colorado River cuts proposal
1 year, 10 months ago

California is lone holdout in Colorado River cuts proposal

Associated Press  

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — Six Western states that rely on water from the Colorado River have agreed on a model to dramatically cut water use in the basin, months after the federal government called for action and an initial deadline passed. Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah and Wyoming sent a letter Monday to Reclamation, which operates the major dams in …

California floated cutting major Southwest cities off Colorado River water before touching its agriculture supply, sources say
1 year, 10 months ago

California floated cutting major Southwest cities off Colorado River water before touching its agriculture supply, sources say

CNN  

CNN — In a closed-door negotiation last week over the fate of the Colorado River, representatives from California’s powerful water districts proposed modeling what the basin’s future would look like if some of the West’s biggest cities – including Phoenix and Las Vegas – were cut off from the river’s water supply, three people familiar with the talks told CNN. …

US states propose Colorado River cuts, California lone holdout
1 year, 10 months ago

US states propose Colorado River cuts, California lone holdout

Al Jazeera  

Authorities in US West are in talks to cut water use as Colorado River faces historically low levels amid drought. Six states in the western United States that rely on water from the Colorado River have agreed on a model to dramatically cut water use in the basin, months after the federal government called for action and an initial deadline …

States miss deadline to address Colorado River water crisis; pressure builds on California
1 year, 10 months ago

States miss deadline to address Colorado River water crisis; pressure builds on California

LA Times  

Water levels in Lake Powell have been dropping during the past 23 years of drought in the Colorado River Basin. In announcing the proposal Monday, Tom Buschatzke, director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources, called it a key step in the “ongoing dialogue” among the seven states “as we continue to seek a collaborative solution to stabilize the Colorado …

AP Exclusive: Emails reveal tensions in Colorado River talks
1 year, 10 months ago

AP Exclusive: Emails reveal tensions in Colorado River talks

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Competing priorities, outsized demands and the federal government’s retreat from a threatened deadline stymied a deal last summer on how to drastically reduce water use from the parched Colorado River, emails obtained by The Associated Press show. As the deadline approached without meaningful progress, one water manager warned: “We’re all headed to a very dark place.” “The …

US agencies sued over fate of rare Rio Grande minnow
2 years ago

US agencies sued over fate of rare Rio Grande minnow

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Environmentalists on Wednesday accused the U.S. government of not doing enough to ensure the survival of the Rio Grande silvery minnow as drought tightens its grip on one of the longest rivers in the West. “It is time to move beyond Band-Aid solutions for the Middle Rio Grande and think holistically about how to save a living …

Increasing pressures on Colorado River water in New Mexico
2 years, 3 months ago

Increasing pressures on Colorado River water in New Mexico

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — 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. State Engineer Mike Hamman, New Mexico’s top water manager, said the state “really feels the shortages” because it doesn’t have the big reservoirs of other states …

In Arizona, worry about access to Colorado River water
2 years, 3 months ago

In Arizona, worry about access to Colorado River water

Associated Press  

TUCSON, Ariz. — Robbie Woodhouse’s grandfather began nearly a century of family farming along the Gila River near Yuma in the middle 1920s when he dug up a bunch of mesquite stumps on his land to make way for his barley, wheat, Bermuda seed, cotton and melon fields. Due to a logjam in interstate negotiations for massive cuts in Colorado …

In Mexico’s dry north, Colorado River adds to uncertainty
2 years, 3 months ago

In Mexico’s dry north, Colorado River adds to uncertainty

Associated Press  

MEXICALI — When Gilbert Quintana, a farmer in the Mexicali Valley, learned he would soon lose 15% of his water supply, he did what he’s done before in a pinch: buy water from other growers in northern Mexico. Adan Vallejo blocks water with mud as he irrigates a field of cotton with water from the Colorado River, Sunday, Aug. 14, …

Drought in the US: Water Supply Cut for States Colorado, Arizona; Mexico’s Quota Reduced
2 years, 4 months ago

Drought in the US: Water Supply Cut for States Colorado, Arizona; Mexico’s Quota Reduced

News 18  

Water supplies to some US states and Mexico will be cut to avoid “catastrophic collapse” of the Colorado River, Washington officials said Tuesday, as a historic drought bites. More than two decades of well below average rainfall have left the river — the lifeblood of the western United States — at critical levels, as human-caused climate change worsens the natural …

US states hit by extreme drought face more water cuts
2 years, 4 months ago

US states hit by extreme drought face more water cuts

Al Jazeera  

Cuts affecting Arizona and Nevada come as water levels at the nation’s largest manmade reservoir, Lake Mead, are set to drop further. For the second year in a row, the US states of Arizona and Nevada will face cuts in the amount of water they can draw from the Colorado River as the Western United States endures an extreme drought, …

As talks on Colorado River water falter, U.S. government imposes new restrictions
2 years, 4 months ago

As talks on Colorado River water falter, U.S. government imposes new restrictions

LA Times  

The water level in Lake Mead, the nation’s largest reservoir, has been dropping amid severe drought conditions and has reached its lowest point since Hoover Dam was built in the 1930s. After Colorado River Basin states failed to meet a deadline for emergency drought reductions Tuesday, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced new emergency water cuts for Arizona, Nevada and …

With California expected to lose 10% of its water within 20 years, Newsom calls for urgent action
2 years, 4 months ago

With California expected to lose 10% of its water within 20 years, Newsom calls for urgent action

LA Times  

With California enduring historic drought amplified by global warming, Gov. And Newsom does not seem very willing to do that.” Poole said the state plan “doesn’t fundamentally change the direction of water management, which is needed to really grapple with climate change.” The governor’s strategy calls for moving ahead with controversial plans to build a giant water tunnel beneath the …

Reduced to a trickle, river managers brace for more drying
2 years, 5 months ago

Reduced to a trickle, river managers brace for more drying

Associated Press  

BERNALILLO, N.M. — Triple digit temperatures and a fickle monsoon season have combined with decades of persistent drought to put one of North America’s longest rivers in its most precarious situation yet. “This is almost the sole source of water in the central part of New Mexico and we’re not trying to save it just for the fish,” said Andy …

Taps have run dry in Monterrey, Mexico, where there is water for factories but not for residents
2 years, 5 months ago

Taps have run dry in Monterrey, Mexico, where there is water for factories but not for residents

LA Times  

Three months pregnant and queasy with morning sickness, Yasmin Acosta Ruiz pushed a cart laden with buckets of water through the scorching July heat. Here on the outskirts of Monterrey, a sprawling industrial city that has become the face of Mexico’s water crisis, every drop counts. “It should be a wake-up call,” said Samuel Sandoval Solis, an expert in water …

Governor signs $1.2B water plan as Arizona faces cutbacks
2 years, 5 months ago

Governor signs $1.2B water plan as Arizona faces cutbacks

Associated Press  

PHOENIX — Arizona Gov. Climate change and a nearly 30-year drought forced the move, which comes as Arizona faces cutbacks in its Colorado River water supply and more loom. “So today we are taking action to do what the men and women of Arizona hired us to do — position our state for success today, tomorrow and for generations to …

Monterrey suffers weeks-long water cutoff amid drought
2 years, 6 months ago

Monterrey suffers weeks-long water cutoff amid drought

Associated Press  

MONTERREY, Mexico — The industrial hub of Monterrey has long been one of Mexico’s most prosperous cities, so its almost 5 million residents were shocked when they lost the most basic of services: water. “We are panicked, because we don’t know when the water will come back on,” said 60-year-old Monterrey resident María del Carmen Lara. “We finally got them …

Major water cutbacks loom as shrinking Colorado River nears ‘moment of reckoning’
2 years, 6 months ago

Major water cutbacks loom as shrinking Colorado River nears ‘moment of reckoning’

LA Times  

Exposed banks of Lake Mead behind Hoover Dam show how low water levels have dropped on the Colorado River-fed reservoir due to persistent and worsening drought. As the West endures another year of unrelenting drought worsened by climate change, the Colorado River’s reservoirs have declined so low that major water cuts will be necessary next year to reduce risks of …

California declares unprecedented water restrictions amid drought
2 years, 7 months ago

California declares unprecedented water restrictions amid drought

Al Jazeera  

Residents have been warned to scale down their water usage this summer, as critical shortages loom. “This is the first time we’ve said, we don’t have enough water to last us for the rest of the year, unless we cut our usage by 35 percent.” Depleted reservoirs Most of the water that southern California residents enjoy begins as snow in …

Expanding drought leaves western US scrambling for water
2 years, 8 months ago

Expanding drought leaves western US scrambling for water

India Today  

Tumbleweeds drift along the Rio Grande as sand bars within its banks widen. On Thursday, federal water managers shared their annual operating plan for the Rio Grande, a major water source for millions of people and thousands of square miles of farmland in Colorado, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico. I have an issue with that.” The state of New Mexico …

Expanding drought leaves western US scrambling for water
2 years, 8 months ago

Expanding drought leaves western US scrambling for water

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Tumbleweeds drift along the Rio Grande as sand bars within its banks widen. On Thursday, federal water managers shared their annual operating plan for the Rio Grande, a major water source for millions of people and thousands of square miles of farmland in Colorado, New Mexico, Texas and Mexico. I have an issue with that.” The state …

US taps $420M to boost water supplies hit by climate change
2 years, 8 months ago

US taps $420M to boost water supplies hit by climate change

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Federal officials slated millions of dollars for rural water projects in several states, with the Biden administration looking to shore up infrastructure needs made more urgent by long-term drought conditions that have been exacerbated by climate change. “This will take us far in the construction of this critically important project,” said Michael Morris, chairman of the water …

Drought-stricken California imposes new round of water cuts
2 years, 9 months ago

Drought-stricken California imposes new round of water cuts

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s urban water users and farmers who rely on supplies from state reservoirs will get less than planned this year as fears of a third consecutive dry year become reality, state officials announced Friday. Local water agencies that know their communities’ unique needs are better poised than state officials to set water use restrictions, Nemeth said. State …

States volunteer to take more cuts in Colorado River water
3 years ago

States volunteer to take more cuts in Colorado River water

Associated Press  

LAS VEGAS — Water leaders in Arizona, Nevada and California signed an agreement Wednesday to voluntarily reduce their take from the Colorado River to help stave off mandatory cuts in the upcoming years. The signing took place at the Colorado River Water Users Association annual meeting in Las Vegas, amid urgency to negotiate new rules for managing the dwindling river …

New Mexico water chief to step down over lack of resources
3 years, 1 month ago

New Mexico water chief to step down over lack of resources

Associated Press  

SANTA FE, N.M. — New Mexico’s top water official says a persistent lack of financial support to protect the state’s water resources is behind his decision to step down. D’Antonio in a written statement said he is optimistic about his agency’s work to limit New Mexico’s liability in the Texas case, but he cited the lack of resources for the …

Drought tests centuries-old water traditions in New Mexico
3 years, 3 months ago

Drought tests centuries-old water traditions in New Mexico

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Paula Garcia, New Mexico Acequia Association executive director, shuns …

New Mexico farmers along Rio Grande face early water cutoff
3 years, 4 months ago

New Mexico farmers along Rio Grande face early water cutoff

Associated Press  

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Hundreds of farmers along central New Mexico’s stretch of the Rio Grande face a second straight year of having their irrigation supplies cut off early. “We understand this could potentially cause people to lose their farms,” said Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District board member Stephanie Russo Baca, who represents Valencia County. “We’re not taking it lightly.” The …

Discover Related