This year has seen a monumental turnaround in climate conditions in Colorado. For the past 20 years, the state has experienced drought with last year being the worst on record. Weather patterns of the past winter and spring brought huge amounts of precipitation and colder temperatures resulting in snow, rain and snow melt runoff. For the first time since 2000, the state is free from drought and “the snowpack sits at 3,700 percent of normal.”[1] According to experts, however, the precipitation benefits to the area are significant but not enough to erase the long-term losses and ever-increasing demands on the water levels in the region, especially to the Colorado River.
The increased precipitation will have a high impact on many of the reservoirs in the area, but both Lake Mead and Lake Powell will only see slight increases in their end year totals, both anticipated to be around fifty percent of capacity. According to Andy Mueller, Colorado River District’s general manager, an engineer estimated that it would take between eight and thirteen years of similar precipitation levels to bring the river back to pre-drought levels.
Another factor impacting water levels is the way in which available water is divided. The agreement that established guidelines for the division of water, called the Colorado River Compact, originated nearly 100 years ago and was conceptualized before climate change. As water levels have dropped concern levels have elevated prompting all states who rely on the Colorado River to agree to a new plan that will help avoid a disastrous situation. The Colorado River Basin Drought Contingency Plan was signed in May which incorporates decreases for certain areas in water use and banking of water in other areas. The plan also includes better management and consumptive practices. All of these tactics will help, but they may not be enough in the end to evade a water crisis. A weather year like this one can’t be counted on so water managers and conservationists agree that “users can’t afford to waste a single drop of water, even in a year of abundance.”[2]
[1] Klingsporn, Katie. “Even after a Rush of Snow and Rain, the Thirsty Colorado River Basin Is ‘Not out of the Woods Yet.’” The Colorado Sun, 1 July 2019, coloradosun.com/2019/07/01/colorado-river-drought-management-plan-water/.
[2] Klingsporn, Katie. “Even after a Rush of Snow and Rain, the Thirsty Colorado River Basin Is ‘Not out of the Woods Yet.’” The Colorado Sun, 1 July 2019, coloradosun.com/2019/07/01/colorado-river-drought-management-plan-water/.
Photo Credit: Anissa Wood, Flickr
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