A once-in-a-lifetime drought in the West continues to impact the Colorado River by dropping water levels at an extraordinary rate. This has a huge impact on the nation’s largest reservoirs -- Lake Mead and Lake Powell.
The Bureau of Reclamation, which decides where the water goes and how much they get, announced this week that water levels at Lake Mead and Lake Powell have reached a tipping point.
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Lake Mead will operate in its first-ever Level 2a Shortage Condition in the calendar year 2023 (Jan. 1, 2023, through Dec. 31, 2023).
What does this mean? It means that those who receive water from the reservoirs will have to cut back.
- Arizona will see the largest cuts at approximately 21% of the state’s annual apportionment in 2023.
- Nevada will see a cut of 8% of the state’s annual apportionment.
- Mexico will see approximately 7% of the country’s annual allotment
- California, which is where most of the country’s produce comes from, will see no required water cuts for 2023 under this operating condition.
Lake Powell will operate in the Lower Elevation Balancing Tier in water year 2023 (Oct. 1, 2022, through Sept. 30, 2023). Lake Powell is a large lake for water recreation and the National Parks Service has closed six of the seven boat ramps.
Looking ahead, Arizona is experiencing monsoon season flooding with heavy rainfall covering the state. It’s important to remember that rainfall has little impact on the reservoirs; their water comes mostly from snowmelt up in Colorado.
In fact, heavy rainfall in Arizona will likely cause flooding rather than help increase the water supply in lakes and rivers. Arizona’s dry rocky soil does not absorb water well, allowing flood conditions to develop quickly without warning.
With no immediate relief in sight for this drought out west, it’s likely those across the United States, including Florida, will see impacts to the crops and the distribution of produce heading into 2023.