A key deadline for the seven states that rely on the Colorado River to reach an agreement on new operating guidelines for Lake Mead and Lake Powell has passed without resolution. The Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees the river’s management, did not present a technical or legal plan by February 14. Instead, political disputes between Upper Basin states (Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) and Lower Basin states (Arizona, California, and Nevada) have escalated.
Lower Basin states responded to the missed deadline with threats of federal intervention. Meanwhile, Upper Basin states remained steadfast in their position. Becky Mitchell, Colorado’s commissioner to the Colorado River Upper Basin Commission, stated: “We’re being asked to solve a problem we didn’t create with water we don’t have.” Supporters of Mitchell’s view emphasize that communities in the Upper Basin have long faced reduced water supplies.
Colorado Springs is among those affected. The city relies on the basin for half its water supply and expects only 30% of its average yield from those rights this year due to historically low snowpack. Despite these conditions, Lake Powell is still scheduled to release 7.48 million acre-feet of water downstream—an amount likely to exceed inflow and lower reservoir levels further.
Upper Basin users regularly accept reduced allocations when natural conditions limit availability—a trend since the Colorado River Compact was established in 1922 and intensified by ongoing drought. Yet they have consistently met obligations to send water south under the Compact while tightening conservation measures.
By contrast, officials claim Lower Basin states continue drawing more than what nature provides by relying on contractual agreements rather than actual supply levels. When reserves at Lake Powell dropped dangerously low, they turned to other reservoirs like Blue Mesa in Colorado for additional releases in 2022—resources intended primarily for use during droughts by Upper Basin users themselves.
The current situation is attributed largely to overuse by Lower Basin states. Although Lower Basin governors announced voluntary “cuts,” critics argue these do not account for significant evaporation losses at Lakes Mead and Powell but are instead presented as conservation efforts.
Arizona officials warned that national security could be jeopardized if reservoir levels fall too far—a statement some view as disregarding local efforts such as those supporting five military bases near Colorado Springs. Local leaders stress that maintaining reliable water supplies remains essential even during shortages.
The press release calls for federal agencies like the Bureau of Reclamation not to be influenced by political pressure or special interests but instead focus on protecting storage levels at both reservoirs. “A short-term deal that rides on the backs of Colorado water users and that will never resolve the core issue of overuse in the Lower Basin is not in our best interest, nor the rest of the basin,” it says.
Unlike their southern counterparts, Upper Basin states lack alternative upstream sources when precipitation falls short; adaptation has been necessary in their planning processes for years. The statement concludes: “It’s time for the Lower Basin states to do the same.”
Further updates can be found at www.coloradoriver.com
