'Peace for 25 years'

Tentative agreement reached on drought plan for Colo. River

Jerd Smith, Rocky Mountain News

Published February 2, 2006 at midnight

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Colorado and six other Western states have reached a tentative agreement on a drought plan for the Colorado River, breaking a 10-month deadlock that threatened to erupt in an epic water war.

"We've bought ourselves a measure of peace for the next 25 years," said Jim Lochhead, a water attorney who helped negotiate the agreement and who represents some of Colorado's largest water utilities.

"There will certainly be public debate about this proposal," Lochhead said, but he called it a "historic milestone" comparable to the original 1922 Colorado River Compact and the agreements that led to the construction of Lake Powell and Lake Mead.

The tentative deal provides more protection for Colorado's share of the river and for Lake Powell during dry years, Lochhead said, and gives all the states more flexibility in managing their own supplies.

"No one is in a position to declare victory," Lochhead said. "But it is a victory for everyone, because we continued to work, as opposed to engaging in parochial infighting and litigation. We were very close to potential litigation."

The river, which starts high in Rocky Mountain National Park, provides more than half the water used on Colorado's Front Range and supplies about 25 million people throughout the West.

The new proposal includes commitments to reduce water use in dry years, to manage Lake Powell and Lake Mead jointly, to rebuild delivery systems below Lake Mead to minimize water lost to evaporation, and for the states to consult with one another before filing lawsuits.

Last April, the states missed a deadline set by U.S. Secretary of Interior Gale Norton to craft a water-sharing plan for the river.

Norton then launched her own effort to develop a federal plan, something that's never been done before.

Experts said the seven-state agreement reached late Tuesday will likely serve as an important template for the federal process.

"I am pleased that the basin states have a preliminary recommendation that they can provide us," Norton said in a written statement.

"I appreciate their dedication to working on a long-term solution, and recognize that it took much time and effort."

Under the 1922 compact, 15 million acre-feet of the river's yearly runoff is divided among the Upper Basin states of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New Mexico and the Lower Basin states, Nevada, Arizona and California.

A subsequent treaty provides 1.5 million acre-feet of water to Mexico.

Other agreements bring the total to more than 17 million acre-feet of water that should legally come out of the river most years.

But experts now believe it doesn't have that much to give.

Modern stream flow records indicate the river is generating less water than the compact envisioned, perhaps just 14 million to 15 million acre-feet.

In the five years since the recent drought began, populations have continued to soar, and it's become clear that the river can't sustain the relentless demands on its system without new drought guidelines.

Under the terms of the tentative agreement:

• Nevada, Arizona and California have agreed to reduce water use in dry years when Lake Powell and Lake Mead drop to dangerous lows.

• Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico have agreed to cope with slightly lower levels in Lake Powell in normal years in exchange for being able to keep more water in Powell during droughts, a move that protects Colorado and its neighbors from demands for more water from such cities as Las Vegas and Phoenix.

• New operating rules will protect water levels needed to generate power and to protect recreational facilities at Lake Powell and Lake Mead.

• Nevada, Arizona and California - already forecasting shortages - have agreed to look for ways to boost the river's water supplies, including building desalination plants on the Mexican border, building better delivery systems below Lake Mead to reduce water waste, and financing more cloud seeding programs to boost mountain snowpacks.

• And all seven states have agreed to pause to consult with one another before initiating lawsuits.

Negotiators warn that much work remains to be done in coming weeks to make sure the states' proposal is finalized and that critical technical issues are resolved.

Federal water officials hope to have a draft environmental impact statement ready for public review this fall. Norton wants the final drought plan ready by the end of 2007.

Highlights of proposal:

• Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico agree to slightly lower levels in Lake Powell in normal runoff years in exchange for being able to keep more water in Powell during droughts. This protects the states against demands for more water from downstream cities such as Phoenix and Las Vegas.

• Joint operating rules will protect water levels needed to generate power and to protect recreational facilities at Lake Powell and Lake Mead.

• Nevada, Arizona and California agree to look for ways to boost the river's water supplies, including building desalination plants on the Mexican border, building better delivery systems below Lake Mead, and financing more cloud seeding programs to boost mountain snowpacks.

Nevada, Arizona and California agree to reduce water use in dry years.

smithj@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-892-5474

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