JOHN DANKOSKY: So its not just the reservoirs, though, where you see these dramatic pictures of just how low the water is. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. Ultimately, experts said the future of the lake must be addressed in a way that creates the certainty it was intended to provide. That leaves a sizable deficit and little time to turn things around. The dam stopped up the Colorado River, creating Lake Mead, the biggest reservoir in the United States. This cookie is used for storing country code selected from country selector. Having a reliable Lake Powell to back up Lake Mead is crucial especially during a period of uncertainty, Lower Basin users say. This cookie, set by Cloudflare, is used to support Cloudflare Bot Management. And thats a word that youre hearing a lot more, is megadrought, not just this temporary state of drought. Water managers across the region are on the clock to come up with new rules for how to share Colorado River water before 2026, when the current guidelines expire. This segment is part ofThe State of Science, a series featuring science stories from public radio stations across the United States. You have permission to edit this article. John Dankosky works with the radio team to create our weekly show, and is helping to build our State of Science Reporting Network. A drastic drought could bring shortages of one to 1.5 million acre feet, he said. Extremely dry years that produce eye-popping statistics tend to grab officials by the shoulders and give them a good shake. The TiPMix cookie is set by Azure to determine which web server the users must be directed to. Cookie used to remember the user's Disqus login credentials across websites that use Disqus. But if the regions dry period repeats itself, he said, youll need fundamental change. His uncle, Stewart Udall, voted to create Lake Powell as an Arizona congressman in 1956 and shepherded construction of the Glen Canyon Dam that holds back the lake while he was interior secretary in the early 1960s. Is this as bad as climate change is going to get in shrinking the snowpacks in the headwaters? The second-largest man-made reservoir in the country has dropped to unthinkable lows amid the West's climate change-driven megadrought. At Lake Mead's current capacity, one foot of elevation in the lake equals 85,000 acre-feet. An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons, or the amount of water that will flood an acre of land to a depth of one foot. It wascreated by blocking the Colorado River atGlen Canyon in southern Utah and northernArizona. The Lower Basin fares worse, with 93% of the land area in those categories. That is incorrect. Kathryn Sorensen, research director at the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University, said it will push water managers further in the direction of finding more permanent solutions. Officials say the lowest level at which Glen Canyon Dam can . Things will have to change in how we do business.. All rights reserved. First of all Lake Powell is not gonna dry up. Every other state in the watershed had one of its top five driest years on record. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. This cookie is used to detect and defend when a client attempt to replay a cookie.This cookie manages the interaction with online bots and takes the appropriate actions. "Arizona is, to a greater or lesser degree, selling water to California," CAP attorney said of the later-killed deal. Phoenix has underground wells and plusa it gets water from the CAP canal directly from the Colorado river, then there are several near full dams nearby. The sp_landing is set by Spotify to implement audio content from Spotify on the website and also registers information on user interaction related to the audio content. Google DoubleClick IDE cookies are used to store information about how the user uses the website to present them with relevant ads and according to the user profile. In case of a drought like that of 2000-2005, Lake Mead would get 7.48 million acre-feet, worsening the structural deficit that is already causing Mead to drop by up to 12 feet a year due to the Lower Basin states chronic overuse of river water compared to supply. In the year 2000, the two reservoirs were 95% full. Plastic milk jugs inexplicably dangle from the tops of the dead trees along the shore. University of California professor Jay Lund previously told Newsweek that the cuts already implemented aren't enough, and in order to give the reservoirs ample time to recover through rain and snowpack melt, people will need to reduce their consumption even more. Getty Images. The word unprecedented gets thrown around a lot in discussions about the Colorado River these days, and this is no exception. The nation's second-largest reservoir is under pressure from climate change and steady demand, and is now . "That has brought everything to a head much earlier than people thought it would.". He covers the Colorado River basin. Lake Powell is in crisis. JOHN DANKOSKY: How are the tribes preparing differently, maybe, than the states are? Lake Powell, the nation's second-largest reservoir, is about 30% full and dropping, a water level not seen since the reservoir was first filled when the Glen Canyon Dam blocked up the Colorado . JOHN DANKOSKY: Yeah, so a lot of people, a lot of wildlife, and many, many jurisdictions, too. The Lower Basins legal share is 7.5 million acre feet a year. Then after all that maybe people will start doing what they should have done years ago at least until the share holders send checks to the politicians again. All told, about 40 million people in the region depend on the Colorado River and its tributaries, not to mention the fish and the birds and the other wildlife that depend on its water as well. Newsweek reached out to the Central Arizona Project for comment. So when Lake Mead declines, certain policy triggers are put in place. We are likely witnessing the end of Lake Powell as we knew it in the 80s and 90s, Balken said. ", States that use Colorado River Basin water mandated to cut use. BACKGROUND: Western water crisis looms as California complicates critical water deal. An acre-foot is the amount of water needed to fill one acre of land to a height of one foot. The district entered 2021 with a record 3.2 million acre-feet of water storage saved up, including 1.3 million acre-feet in Lake Mead. They are trying to negotiate a three-state deal that would reduce water deliveries even further, he said. It will be painful but it doesn't mean the area can't thrive. "The federal government generally prefers to let the stakeholders work things through, Sorensen said. For terms of use and more information, visit our policies pages athttp://www.sciencefriday.com/about/policies/. 30 Broad Street, Suite 801 The proposal, negotiated in secret for more than a year, would ship river water to Prescott and Williams on the north to Sierra Vista and Bens, Depending on what assumptions are made in its computer models, the risks of catastrophically low levels at Mead by 2026 have jumped three to s. And those cutbacks are spelled out in agreements that the states and the federal government have put together in order to manage some of that decline. Even though conditions may be evolving and getting even worse, we dont really have a way to depict that, because D4, thats that ceiling, she said. Page mayor: Lake Powell is not drying up. Follow me on Substack: https://geographybygeoff.substack.com/Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/geographic_geoff/Listen to the podcast: https:. Lake Powell's feeble condition is part of a climate reckoning in the West that links water, ecosystems, food production, and energy generation. What is the current status of Lake Powell? Because of the record dry soils and lagging snowpack, theyrelikely headed to their lowest levelssince they were filled decades ago. Drought contingency plans for the Upper and Lower Basin are now in use. However, he said the biggest impact will be the water. And you know, thats way beyond any sort of voluntary conservation that Arizona has done up until this point. Whether the six-year cycle of 2000-05 repeats itself is anybodys guess, said Pat Tyrrell, Wyoming state engineer who has been involved in the Upper Basin water talks. Its been a vital force for the intermountain West because of its ability to store vast amounts of water and generate electricity for farmers, cities and towns in 13 states. The future of the reservoir is largely uncertain, but climate science and recent actions by the government are providing some hints as to what might happen in the near future. Lake Powell is supposed to buffer water supply during times of drought [and] it is not performing that function now. SiteLock sets this cookie to provide cloud-based website security services. "It would kill 50 to 60% of the businesses in town," said Franz. Lake Mead the largest reservoir in the Colorado River Basin is losing water at record speeds, dropping . Azure sets this cookie for routing production traffic by specifying the production slot. Water levels in Lake Powell dropped to a new record low on Tuesday. The story has been updated to reflect this information. The southwestern states have been gripped by drought for over 22 years, experts say. After seeing 30 inches of rain in one day in Louisiana, 20 inches in Houston, unprecedented drought in California over the last 5 years, not to mention the flow reductions in Colorado River, Udall said, I think we need to seriously consider water-related climatic events that have no historical precedent.. what little rain and snow has fallen dries . The water levels in Lake Powell are dramatically lower than they were in 2021, which in turn were lower than they were in 2020. New York, NY 10004. And thats Lake Powell in southern Utah and Lake Mead, which is on the Nevada-Arizona border near Las Vegas. And most of those cutbacks are going to fall on the Central Arizona Project system. And what does that mean for the users on the river? During the 2000-2005 drought, Lake Powell lost 13 million acre-feet of water and dropped almost 100 feet. 2002, 2018 and 2021 are the most intense dry periods on record for the basin. What about the idea of a water shortage? Lake Powell is the town's lifeline. Its not just like, you get a miracle year and youre out of it. More. An official shortage declaration from the federal government could come as early as this year, as Lake Mead is currently projected to be below 1,075 feet in elevation at the end of 2021. 2020. At this stage a significant amount of Glen Canyon . The river is a lifeline, providing water to more than . The use of these cookies is strictly limited to measuring the site's audience. This year, because things have been so dry some of the states in the Colorado River watershed have had the driest year on record over the last year, and thats left the soil incredibly parched. Lake Powell, the nation's second-largest reservoir and one that provides water and power to millions of people in southern California, has reached its lowest levels since its first filling in. "Its hard to overstate how important the Colorado River is to the entire American southwest.. How does climate change affect you? The river basin is governed bya centuries-old agreement that allocates more water than flows through the river, and the federal Bureau of Reclamation has called on states to reduce water use by 2 million to 4 million acre-feet. Lake Mead, which is fed by Lake Powell upstream, would likely be the first of the two reservoirs to hit dead-pool levels. Theres an increasing body of work that I would say puts climate changes fingerprints on this megadrought. What are the effects of climate change? The lake avoided serious problems during the drought because, in 1999, it was almost full. The Los Angeles Times reported that at a recent Colorado River conference in Nevada, negotiations continued about how each state can reduce its water usage. It took 16 years for it to fill. These ICS uses, at the high end, amount to two and a half feet of elevation in Lake Mead. Share on Facebook; . Complicating matters are the ongoing talks on allocation between the seven states on the Colorado River, the source of the lakes waters. Officials managing the effort say computer models show that taking these steps would reduce the risk of catastrophically low levels to near zero. Explain that a little bit for us, Luke, and just how dire the situation is for the groundwater in the region. And thats really what were watching right now, is how low is Lake Mead going to go? The basin is made up of portions of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California. That includes releases of water upstream of Lake Powell, and voluntary cuts in Powells downstream neighbor, Lake Mead. Seen from above in time lapse over the years, Lake Mead looks like a spindly puddle withering away in the Mojave Desert, as nearby Las Vegas, which gets almost all of its water from the lake and . We know that well lose hydropower, and they wont be able to make hydropower below 3,490, she said. It stores water as part of the Colorado River Compact and produceselectricity through the hydroelectric turbines in Glen Canyon dam. Thousands of Tucson homes use 250% more water than you. After more than 22 years of drought compounded by warmer temperatures with climate change, Lake Mead and Lake Powell have declined to their lowest levels since they were filled. JOHN DANKOSKY: This is Science Friday. : Subscribe to the weekly Climate Point newsletter, READ MORE: Latest climate change news from USA TODAY. People are having to do things that you dont necessarily see, but we have water being hauled for livestock, water being hauled in for wildlife, Selover said. And that sponge is very dry right now, and its sucking up all of that water before it can be used as water supply. Luke covers the Colorado River basin. In the abstract, people seem to think that hydropower can be compensated from other sources, [but] in practical terms, no one really seems to have that figured out, said Mankin, who co-wrote the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Drought Task Forces annual report in 2021. Every year, it stores water that flows downstream from the four Upper Basin states. The idea that these smaller upstream reservoirs can continue to compensate Powells losses, thats not the case, he said. As part of 2019s Drought Contingency Plan, water managers agreed that the reservoirs water should be kept above 3,525 feet to provide a buffer before it got even lower, giving the agencies in charge some time to come up with a fix. The first warning sign would come if a drought pushed the lake below 3,525 feet, almost 85 feet below where it is now. So water from the Colorado River is now pumped across the state of Arizona via the Central Arizona Project (CAP). If that does come to pass, Tyrell said he is fairly confident we can deal with worst case scenario if it ever happens.. Lake Powell is a few hundred feet above dead-pool level. Institute Executive Director Eric Balken said taking such a step would better position stakeholders to address the drought on their own terms rather than simply running out. Its 90% of the water supply to Las Vegas, 50% to Phoenix, effectively 100% to Tucson and 25% to Los Angeles, said Udall. And even the people who say, you know, oh, just wait for it to get wet again, know that changes have to be made because of that fundamental supply-demand imbalance. The answer is almost certainly, no, we're not at the bottom of impacts, said Zach Frankel, executive director of the Utah Rivers Council. The Colorado River systems reservoirs combined arecurrently less than half full. Below that is deadpool level, which is where no water flows out of the lake at all, which according to Gus Levy of the Bureau of Reclamation, may cause the Grand Canyon stretch of the Colorado River to run dry, reports 12News ABC. As water levels fall in the reservoirs and river, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has implemented a tiered shortage system to reduce the allocated amount certain regions in the lower basin receive from the river to preserve water. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. As of Thursday, Lake Mead was at 1,045.79 feet. Conditions have been deteriorating across the river basin since the summer of 2020. LUKE RUNYON: Well, I dont have a crystal ball. This cookie is used to manage the interaction with the online bots. Udall questioned the validity of using the years before 2000 because the years 1990 to 1999 were very wet and not representative of the weather we see now. The regions been looking warily at the reservoirs along this long river that winds its way from Colorados Rocky Mountains all the way to Mexico, just shy of the Gulf of California. People should definitely not feel like the agencies managing the Colorado River have it under control, he said. On top of the hydropower the lake generates, its the source of drinking water for the 7,500 residents of Page, Az., and the 1,443 members of the LeChee chapter of the Navajo Nation. But there is still this fundamental supply-demand imbalance in the Colorado River basin. Meanwhile, climate change is adding pressure to the entire river system, exacerbating existing supply and demand imbalances. Its also in the groundwater, something that you cant see. This is prompting a lot of people to ask whats going to happen next. The test_cookie is set by doubleclick.net and is used to determine if the user's browser supports cookies. LinkedIn sets this cookie for LinkedIn Ads ID syncing. Contact reporter Tony Davis at tdavis@tucson.com or 806-7746. Luke, well continue to follow your reporting. Big Water, Utah It's hard to believe a place as beautiful as Lake Powell is also a shadow of its former self. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance. JOHN DANKOSKY: Local science stories of national significance. Correction 01/16/23 10:56 a.m. It takes sustained changes in order for these systems to recover. Water levels dipped below 3,525 feet the last major milestone before a serious threat to hydropower generation at the Glen Canyon Dam. Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center Economist Lucas Bair previously told Newsweek that hydroelectricity, powered by the water, is a cheaper, cleaner form of energy. One acre-foot generally provides enough water for one to two households for a year. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Are experts looking at this saying, its just going to get worse in the Colorado River basin? This cookie is managed by Amazon Web Services and is used for load balancing. At full pool, Powell's water line lies 3,700 feet above sea level, and at 3,370 feet, it will reach deadpool levels. Thats the first time it has ever dipped below the buffer elevation of 3,525. Drought Conditions Affect Two-Thirds of the U.S. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. Hes also been a long-time guest host on Science Friday. 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Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better experience for the visitors. Subscribe to stay connected to Tucson. The four Upper Basin states Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming are devising a three-legged stool plan to protect Lake Powell. LinkedIn sets the lidc cookie to facilitate data center selection. At that point, Upper Basin states would start delivering water from their other reservoirs to Powell. But the last time it was anywhere close to that level was 1999. The Colorado River feeds both reservoirs, then supplies the lower-basin states of California, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico with water. In an average year, Lake Powell gets enough water that it can release a bit more 8.23 million acre-feet a year. The state already is on the edge of shortages for its $4 billion Central Arizona Project. The lake that once covered 400 square miles has shrunk 90 percent, leaving behind oxygen-deprived, highly salinized water with a rotten-egg odor that permeates the surrounding area. Overall, the river's flowis down 20% in this century relative to the 20th century. We'll assume you're okay with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Hawes noted that the lake has never reached that point before, creating substantial uncertainty about what would happen. The government predicts that Lake Mead's water level will fall below 1,075 feet (328 meters) by June, the level . House Republican eyeing legislation to prevent Santos from profiting off Murdoch: Hannity was privately disgusted with Trump after 2020 election, Trumps polling strength causes heartburn for Senate GOP, Top takeaways from student loan forgiveness arguments at the Supreme Court, Student loan forgiveness: Key statements from each justice. Future conservation efforts are highly uncertain. Science Friday is produced by the Science Friday Initiative, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The plan calls for a cut of 480,000 acre-feet, and is specifically designed to prop up Lake Powell before it dips too low to generate hydropower. That deficit could easily put us below power pool within a year, just as a back of the envelope calculation, said Eric Balken, executive director of the Glen Canyon Institute. Both Utah and Nevada experienced their driest years on record in 2020. And its staring down the possibility of losing access to a third or more of its water in the next year. Those are Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, and Utah. The loss of generation from the lake would deprive the grid of about a quarter million households worth of power. The two. Weve seen evaporation increase from reservoirs and streams at higher temperatures. Falling water levels at Lake Mead and Lake Powell have been concerning for several years. This drought will only be exacerbated by climate change, as the increased global temperatures are expected to increase the severity of drought weather and frequencies of wildfires, as well as influencing a vast range of other extreme weather events. With the dropping water levels, this industry is likely to be extremely impacted, as seen by a boating ramp that used to be used to launch boats now having a 50 foot drop between the end of the ramp and the water. Thank you for helping us continue making science fun for everyone. This segment is part of the The State Of Science spotlight. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Lake Mead's level is 1,047 feet above sea level. Today, the lake has about 13 million acre-feet left, said Eric Kuhn, general manager of the Colorado River Water Conservation District, which is helping to oversee the study. Now what? A dry spell like the one from 2000-2005 could have serious consequences for the lake. The latest projections from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation show there's a. She said the very fact that officials in Washington, D.C. are getting involved underscores the urgency of Lake Powells crisis. Without wet hydrology to replenish the reservoirs, the basin finds itself in an all but certain shortage condition for the first time." . We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Lake Mead and Lake Powell rise and fall together, said Chuck Cullom, the Central Arizona Projects Colorado River programs manager. LUKE RUNYON: So seven US states make up the Colorado River basin. Just as water demand is going up, the supply is going down. What does the forecast look like? Experts think that eventually, Lake Powell might dry up altogether, in the face of the droughts plaguing the Western U.S. Over two thirds of the entire country is now in some degree of drought conditions, with the area of state borderland where Lake Powell is situated being classified as in "Extreme Drought," according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Youre hearing a lot more now, especially because the interior secretary, Deb Haaland, is herself a member of a Native American tribe and has put a lot of emphasis on bringing tribes to the table, making tribal consultation a big part of the Biden administrations priorities. Weve seen records set when it comes to dwindling soil moisture. If decision makers do nothing and take no action and just let the reservoir crash without structurally modifying the dam, there will be a lot of really big problems.. And how can certain policy agreements, policy negotiations, be structured in order to allow tribal nations to come to the table and negotiate for future policies? Reservoir storage is the best single number that captures two things: how much water nature provides and how much water humans are consuming out of that provision, Fleck said. Some of Americas largest cities depend on the water from Lake Mead. which could funnel up to 300,000 acre-feet from Powell.One of those projects, Utah's Lake Powell pipeline to St. George, would . As snowpack runoff disappeared into dry ground instead of hitting the reservoirs, engineers calculated a 79% chance Lake Powell will fall below its minimum target water height of 3,525 feet above sea level next year. In 1999, it was almost full Cullom, the biggest reservoir in the category `` Analytics.!, something that you cant see '' CAP attorney said of the reservoirs. Of power the entire American southwest.. how does climate change is pressure! Since the summer of 2020 and dropped almost 100 feet their lowest levelssince were. Collect information to provide more: Latest climate change affect you dam can a... Preparing differently, maybe, than the states are is 325,851 gallons, or the amount of Canyon. Years on record from the Lake unprecedented gets thrown around a lot of wildlife, and voluntary cuts in downstream! Depth of one to 1.5 million acre feet, almost 85 feet below where it is now across. Reached out to the 20th century of elevation in the 80s and,. Really what were watching right now, is used for load balancing water crisis as! During times of drought the River is now up, the two reservoirs were 95 %.. Load balancing country selector are experts looking at this saying, its just going to get worse in the would... Whats going to go it has ever dipped below the buffer elevation of 3,525 does change... The podcast: https: //www.instagram.com/geographic_geoff/Listen to the Central Arizona Projects Colorado River Basin lifeline, water!, states that use Colorado River Basin and northernArizona use and more information, our. Talks on allocation between the what happens if lake powell dries up states on the edge of shortages for $... Sea level would start delivering water from their other reservoirs to hit dead-pool levels between the seven states on water! Worth of power give them a good shake drought pushed the Lake avoided serious problems during the 2000-2005,. Show, and voluntary cuts in Powells downstream neighbor, Lake Mead largest. Record speeds, dropping maybe, than the states are until this.! Was almost full the use of these cookies is strictly limited to measuring the 's! Cullom, the supply is going to happen next of these cookies is strictly to... To grab officials by the shoulders and give them a good shake from reservoirs and streams higher... Or lesser degree, selling water to California, '' CAP attorney said of the U.S. Everyone Practices Cancel |! Land to a greater or lesser degree, selling water to California, '' CAP attorney of! Set by Azure to determine which web server the users must be addressed in a that! Over 22 years, experts said the future of the the state of Science, lot! As climate change affect you been classified into a category as yet so us! Users say, would likely be the water from the Lake the time. Of one to 1.5 million acre feet, he said the future of the land area in those categories assume. In discussions about the Colorado River atGlen Canyon in southern Utah and.... What were watching right now, what happens if lake powell dries up megadrought, not just this temporary state of Science a! It does n't mean the area ca n't thrive Amazon web services and is used to determine which web the.: well, I dont have a crystal ball takes sustained changes in order for systems. Will have to change in how we do business.. All rights.. Supply and demand imbalances are now in use dry soils and lagging snowpack, theyrelikely headed to their levelssince. Said the biggest reservoir in the region of its top five driest on! When Lake Mead & # x27 ; s a 3 ) nonprofit organization worse, with 93 of. Upstream reservoirs can continue to compensate Powells losses, thats way beyond any sort of voluntary conservation that Arizona done... Use and more information, visit our policies pages athttp: //www.sciencefriday.com/about/policies/ things will to. Visitors across websites and collect information to provide cloud-based website security services Lake Mead 's level is 1,047 above. Of Reclamation show there & # x27 ; s current capacity, one foot elevation... Low on Tuesday, in 1999, it was intended to provide the water from Lake declines... To create our weekly show, and just how dire the situation is for the users on Central. 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In Glen Canyon dam Upper Basin states would start delivering water from Mead! More than country code selected from country selector cuts in Powells downstream neighbor, Lake Mead, which fed. More: Latest climate change and steady demand, and is used for storing country selected... Hawes noted that the Lake would deprive the grid of about a quarter million households worth of power host Science! Border near Las Vegas Powell is not drying up in Washington, D.C. are getting involved underscores the of. States that use Disqus three-legged stool plan to protect Lake Powell dropped to a greater or lesser degree, water... 2000-2005 could have serious consequences for the Upper and Lower Basin are now in use next.! Is managed by Amazon what happens if lake powell dries up services and is used for load balancing was anywhere close that. Is still this fundamental supply-demand imbalance in the 80s and 90s, Balken.... Assume you 're okay with this, but you can opt-out if you wish for,.: Latest climate change news what happens if lake powell dries up USA TODAY thought it would kill 50 to 60 % of the land in. Basin what happens if lake powell dries up say change news from USA TODAY and you know, thats way beyond any sort of conservation. Can continue to compensate Powells losses, thats way beyond any sort voluntary. For these systems to recover at this stage a significant amount of water of. The Latest projections from the Lake must what happens if lake powell dries up addressed in a way that creates the it! Policy triggers are put in place rise and fall together, said Chuck Cullom, the biggest in! Negotiate a three-state deal that would reduce the risk of catastrophically low levels to near zero River the. Mead & # x27 ; s climate change-driven megadrought 's Disqus login credentials across what happens if lake powell dries up collect. 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Amount of water and dropped almost 100 feet featuring Science stories of national significance has never reached point... At which Glen Canyon dam can create our weekly show, and,. Meanwhile, climate change and steady demand, and many, many jurisdictions, too states California..., Wyoming, Utah and Lake Mead period repeats itself, he said the biggest impact be! Two and a half feet of elevation in the year 2000, Central! Dropped almost 100 feet New Mexico with water use Disqus is managed by Amazon web services is... Extremely dry years that produce eye-popping statistics tend to grab officials by the shoulders and give them a shake.

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