How Biden's $63.4M in new money for the Colorado River may help the West

SALT LAKE CITY — The ailing Colorado River, serving 40 million people in seven Western states, has long been described as being on life support by water managers.

Drought. Diversions. Seven states that don't want to give up what they believe is their fair share of its water resources. Add Native American tribes' water rights and Mexico's use of the river and it becomes complicated and fraught with divisions.

President Joe Biden says he has a plan with new money aimed at conservation for a river that has long been described as the "Workhorse of the West." It is the vital water lifeline for the mostly arid Southwest and helped foster the development and the livability of cities like Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Denver. It irrigates 15% of the nation's farmland and provides 90% of the country's winter vegetables.

Additionally, the second-highest concrete dam in the nation — Glen Canyon Dam — siphons Colorado River water from the Upper Basin states to the Lower Basin states that include California, Arizona and Nevada.

With a total capacity of 1,320 megawatts, Glen Canyon produces around 5 billion kilowatt-hours of hydroelectric power annually which is distributed by the Western Area Power Administration to Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and Nebraska. In the immediate vicinity, without the dam, the lights in Page, Arizona, would go dark.

What's the plan?

Biden announced $63.4 million in new investment to help the Colorado River.

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said it is a good step to build on continuing conservation efforts in the Colorado River Basin.

Included in the announcement is the execution of seven new system conservation agreements in Arizona, which will save up to 162,710-acre feet of water in Lake Mead through 2026. The conservation agreements will help finance voluntary system conservation to protect Colorado River reservoir storage volumes amid persistent drought conditions driven by climate change and other factors.

"Thanks to President Biden's Investing in America agenda, the Lower Colorado River Basin System Conservation and Efficiency Program is helping address, improve and protect the long-term stability of the Colorado River System," said Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. "The Biden-Harris administration is using every tool and resource at our disposal to continue our sustained, collaborative progress in increasing water conservation across the West."

The new conservation agreements build on the Biden-Harris administration's announcement of a historic consensus-based proposal to conserve at least 3 million-acre feet of Colorado River System water through the end of 2026, when the current operating guidelines are set to expire.

These agreements are part of conservation commitments made by the Lower Basin states, 2.3 million acre-feet of which will be compensated through funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, which invests a total of $4.6 billion to address the historic drought across the West.

But managing a system forged by congressional endorsement more than 100 years ago is fraught with political fights, environmental concerns and the ultimate aim to make sure who gets what they think they deserve from the river, regardless of potential outcomes.

The new funding particularly focuses on Lower Basin states' water usage such as Arizona's.

"Addressing the drought crisis requires an all-hands-on-deck moment, and close collaboration among federal, state, tribal and local communities. We are excited to see so many Arizona entities committing to system conservation and partnership," said Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton. "Together, we can come together to find solutions to meet the challenges of these unprecedented drought conditions."

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