Arizona discussions on drought contingency planning. In addition to transfers, exchanges and groundwater banking, metropolitan has developed specialized conservation programs whereby metropolitan invests in conservation programs outside its service area and receives the water that is conserved. Lcra provides public power, manages the lower colorado river, builds and operates transmission lines, owns public parks, and offers. As a result, the risk of reaching critically low elevations at lakes powell and mead has increased nearly fourfold over the past decade. The project will ultimately provide colorado river water to nearly 700,000 acres of nonindian agricultural lands and up to 6,900 acres of tribal lands. The project stretches more than 600 miles, from lake oroville in the north to. Colorado river pacific institute advancing water resilience. Water supply planning lower colorado river authority. The colorado river water compact drafted in 1922 to divide water between upper and lower basin states was based on analysis of one of the wettest 10year periods in history, establishing a permanent deficit. Californias colorado river water use plan may 11, 2000 this is a working draft of californias colorado river water use plan. Initial characterization of the groundwater system near the. Colorado river to convey water released from lake storage for use by others.
Supreme court, contracts, agreements and an international treaty collectively known as. You can find older articles in river report archives. Arizona discussions on drought contingency planning arizona. The 19962000 final report has not yet been issued but table uc1 through uc8 is available on the usbr upper colorado. Water resources of lower colorado river salton sea area lower colorado river water supply its magnitude and distribution by ajllen g.
Colorado river management arizona department of water. The control of this invasive species has cost water utilities on the lower colorado river millions of dollars, and these costs are expected to increase as these species spread throughout the river system. This is clearly the right thing to do for our customers, our future water supply and the basin. Priority dates for major water rights on the lower part of colorado river 25 rank effective priority date water right holder. News coverage of the colorado river basin in western water. Water management plan lower colorado river authority. State water project water supply amendments for water. Upper colorado basin saltverde basin water year 2020 precip to date 84%18. Northern waters boundaries include portions of eight counties and encompass approximately 1. The lower portion of the upper colorado river is remote and land uses generally consist of ranching, timbering, recreational boating and fishing, and mineral extraction. Aug, 2015 colorado river board of california application for lower colorado water supply project water applicant information. A project to bring up to 150,000 acrefeet of water from the lower colorado river to san antonio was included in every version of the state water plan issued between 2000 and 2007, and the 2011 version includes an offchannel reservoir that would be developed by saws and the lower colorado river authority and bring 90,000 acrefeet to san antonio by 2030 see the 2011 plan.
Department of the interior and western municipal water. Water project, and from the colorado river via the colorado river aqueduct. Mwd is entitled to take about 48 percent of available state water project through its longterm state water project supply contract. Colorado river board of california application for lower colorado water supply project water applicant information. Colorado river supply under dcp will begin in 2020. Since 2000, historically dry conditions have added stress to the colorado rivers water resources. The biennial colorado river symposium, an invitationonly stakeholder event held in. Water supply infrastructure projects were constructed, legal and contractual. The state water project is owned by the state of california and is operated by the department of water resources dwr. Overview of the colorado river basin water supply and. The project provides hydroelectric power, flood control and water storage for participating states along the upper portion of the colorado river and its major tributaries. The focus of this study was to gain a better understanding of the effect of lining the allamerican canal, and other management actions, on future total dissolved solids concentrations in groundwater pumped by lower colorado water supply project wells that is delivered to the allamerican canal. Trends in water supply and water use in the colorado river basin are shown above.
Colorado river board of california, 770 fairmont avenue, suite 100, glendale, ca 912031068. This masters thesis project strives to support basin decisionmakers by providing qualitative and quantitative frameworks on implications of low water levels for water supply vulnerability, hydropower generation, lake meads recreation industry, and the ecology of. The study is not a regional or river basin plan or proposal or plan for any. The arizona water bank the lower basin water banking program in. On a near perfect day in may, representatives of all seven colorado river basin states, the u. A project to bring up to 150,000 acrefeet of water from the lower colorado river to san antonio was included in every version of the state water plan issued between 2000 and 2007, and the 2011 version includes an offchannel reservoir that would be developed by saws and the lower colorado river authority and bring 90,000 acrefeet to san antonio by 2030 see the 2011 plan summary.
Pdf water management in the colorado river basin dealing. Supply lessons colorado river natural flow will continue to be highly variable, with potential periods of much higher and much lower flows colorado river storage project reservoirs will continue to be critical to allow any future upper basin development. Hydroelectric plants on the river generate nearly billion kilowatthours of electricity annually. The focus of this study was to gain a better understanding of the effect of lining the allamerican canal, and other management actions, on future total dissolved solids. In addition to transfers, exchanges and groundwater banking, metropolitan has developed specialized conservation programs whereby metropolitan invests in conservation programs outside its service area and receives the water that is. It defined the relationship between the upper basin states, where most of the rivers water supply originates, and the lower basin states, where most of. The colorado river system conservation program will provide funding for pilot conservation programs in 2015 and 2016. Water supply risks pages metropolitan water district of. It is anticipated that new rules will be negotiated and put into effect after 2026. Comments and workshop proceedings on the lower colorado river. The projects and programs metropolitan has developed to restore reliability of colorado river supplies cover a wide range of topics. Colorado river water supply for constituents throughout the state. The project provides hydroelectric power, flood control and water storage for participating states along the upper portion of the colorado river and its major tributaries since its inception in 1956, the project has grown to.
The proposed reservoir would provide lcra operational flexibility by helping meet the demands of. Lcras mission is to enhance the lives of the texans it serves through water stewardship, energy and community service. The law of the river colorado river compact foundation upper colorado river compact 15 other major laws, compacts, treaties and court decrees governs all aspects of administering the river relations with mexico water quality and environmental issues. The colorado river basin offers a major renewable water supply in the southwestern united states. Water allocations, drought, and the federal role congressional research service 1 introduction from its headwaters in colorado and wyoming to its terminus in the gulf of california, the colorado river basin covers more than 246,000 square miles. The colorado river provides water to almost 40 million people and 4 million acres of farmland. Purpose the purpose of this work plan is to set forth a process for helping develop colorados position regarding whether and how any colorado river demand management program could or should operate within colorado. The program works toward the recovery of species currently listed under the endangered species act esa. In 2000, the colorado river basin entered a period of drought, accompanied by decreased precipitation and increased average temperatures, and continues today. Colorado river basin water supply and demand study navigating the future of the colorado river natural resources law center june 9, 2011. Lower colorado river basin great basin columbia river basin principal river basins in utah upper colorado. The upper basin contributes the vast majority, about 92%, of the total.
Hely abstract the water supply in the lower colorado river depends almost entirely on a the virgin flow at compact point lee ferry. Population centers in the lower portion of the upper colorado river include. The lower colorado river authority lcra is a nonprofit public utility created in november 1934 by the texas legislature. The coloradobig thompson project supplies water to more than 640,000 acres of irrigated farm and ranch land and about 1,000,000 people in northeastern colorado.
Lower colorado river operations lower colorado region. Colorado river drought contingency planning drought. The biennial colorado river symposium, an invitationonly stakeholder event held in santa fe, new mexico. Initial characterization of the groundwater system near. It was negotiated by the seven colorado river basin states and the federal government in 1922. The purpose of this document, water management plan for the lower colorado river basin wmp, is to define lcras water management programs and policies in accordance with these requirements. The colorado river basin water supply and demand study study, initiated in january 2010, was conducted by the bureau of reclamations reclamation upper colorado and lower colorado regions, and agencies representing the seven colorado river basin states basin states in collaboration with stakeholders throughout the colorado river basin. Supreme court, contracts, agreements and an international treaty collectively known as the law of the river.
This paper discusses colorado river water supply, demands. Overview of the colorado river basin water supply and demand. Secure water act report climate change and water 2011 study of longterm augmentation options for the water supply of the colorado river system march 2008 comprehensive framework study reports june 1971 lower colorado region large pdf file, 17. Use of colorado river water within california is subject to rules and regulations, laws, decrees of the u. About twothirds of the water flowing in the colorado river and its tributaries is used for irrigation, and the other onethird supplies urban areas, evaporates into the atmosphere, or provides water to riparian streamside vegetation. United states department of interior, colorado river system consumptive uses and losses report. Radium, state bridge, bond, mccoy, burns, dotsero, and glenwood springs.
Lower colorado river water quality partnership introduction. The lower colorado river multispecies conservation program lcr mscp was created to balance the use of the colorado river water resources with the conservation of native species and their habitats. The report examined the water supply available to upper basin colorado, new mexico, utah, and wyoming and lower basin. Department of the interior and the bureau of reclamation signed the drought contingency plans for the upper and lower colorado river basins. The 2015 wmp also incorporated the best available scientific studies into new criteria to help meet environmental flow needs of the lower colorado river and matagorda bay. Weekly lower colorado water supply report bureau of reclamation. Official forecast map official forecast list official forecast discussion discussion archive upper colorado situational awareness lower colorado situational awareness official forecast publication publication archive specific site archive latest model guidance map latest model guidance list western forecast map 2019 verification map. State project delivers 86,249 af of water approximately 140 miles buried pipeline 5 pump stations 6 hydropower stations 26. Geological survey, in cooperation with the city of needles, began a study of the hydrogeology along the allamerican canal, which conveys water from the colorado river to the imperial valley. However, water demands are outstripping supply, and climate change makes the situation even more urgent.
The colorado river storage project is a united states bureau of reclamation project designed to oversee the development of the upper colorado river basin. Lower colorado river water supply its magnitude and distribution. As lcras blueprint for its operation of the lakes buchanan. May 04, 2018 it was negotiated by the seven colorado river basin states and the federal government in 1922.
The colorado river provides water to over 40 million people and more than four million acres of farmland in arizona, california, nevada, utah, new mexico, colorado and wyoming, collectively known as the seven colorado river basin states. Colorado river system water to contribute to conservation of water supplies in lake mead and other colorado river reservoirs in the lower basin. Prairie regulating reservoir project lower colorado river. Water use summary cy 2020 cy 2020 cy 2020 cy 2020 arizona. During the past 20 years, average water supply and average water use have been about equal. Under these conditions, reservoirs are replenished more. Although power generation has been a major factor in the economic feasibility of major riverdevelopment projects and recreational use of reservoirs and several. The determination of available interruptible supply was based on water supply conditions and a lookahead test under certain conditions.
When water use red line exceeds water supply blue line in a given year, the amount of water stored is reduced. Lower colorado river water supply its magnitude and distribution by allen g. Key points on average, about 170 million acrefeet maf of precipitation falls over the colorado river basin annually, but only about 10% 17 maf becomes natural streamflow available for use. It defined the relationship between the upper basin states, where most of the river s water supply originates, and the lower basin states, where most of the water demands were developing. Lower colorado river water supply its magnitude and.
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