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I. COLORADO RIVER WATER MANAGEMENT ISSUES COLORADO RIVER BASIN The Colorado River and its tributaries within Colorado drain over one third of the state's area. This area receives nearly 60% of the state's total precipitation but has only 12% of its population: Less than 20% of the Colorado River Basin lies inside Colorado, but about 70% of the water in the river at Lee Ferry Arizona (Compact Point) originates in the state. Originating in the north central mountains of Colorado, the main stem of the Colorado River flows southwesterly, is met at Grand Junction by the Gunnison River, and continues west into Utah. The Yampa and White Rivers flow westward across the northwest quadrant of the state to the Utah border where they join the Green River, another tributary of the Colorado originating in Wyoming. The San Miguel and Dolores Rivers begin near the southwestern comer of the state and flow north along the western border. The San Juan River and its tributaries collect the water in the southernmost regions of Colorado west of the Continental Divide and carry it through northwest New Mexico and southeastern Utah to Lake Powell. The Colorado River flows through Utah to Lake Powell, thence through the northwest comer of Arizona to Lake Mead. From Hoover Dam it flows southward to Mexico forming the border between Nevada, California and Arizona, and yielding major diversions to central Arizona and southern California. The river is the lifeblood of the southwestern US and its development and management have been the focus of attention by the member states for more than a century. Waters of the Colorado River System have been apportioned by a treaty with Mexico, compacts, and a Supreme Court decree to the seven basin states. COLORADO RIVER BASIN o w C;..t C,.) C) C1"J LOCATION MAP I