My WebLink
|
Help
|
About
|
Sign Out
Home
Browse
Search
9367 (2)
CWCB
>
UCREFRP
>
Public
>
9367 (2)
Metadata
Thumbnails
Annotations
Entry Properties
Last modified
7/14/2009 5:02:35 PM
Creation date
5/22/2009 5:44:48 PM
Metadata
Fields
Template:
UCREFRP
UCREFRP Catalog Number
9367
Author
Colorado Water Workshop.
Title
Proceedings
USFW Year
1992.
USFW - Doc Type
Colorado Water Workshop July 22-24, 1992.
Copyright Material
NO
There are no annotations on this page.
Document management portal powered by Laserfiche WebLink 9 © 1998-2015
Laserfiche.
All rights reserved.
/
196
PDF
Print
Pages to print
Enter page numbers and/or page ranges separated by commas. For example, 1,3,5-12.
After downloading, print the document using a PDF reader (e.g. Adobe Reader).
Show annotations
View images
View plain text
<br />The operating criteria provide for minimum release deliveries <br />from Lake Powell of 8.23 million acre-feet per year. That is more <br />than the 75 million acre-feet over ten years referred to in the <br />Compact. Despite disclaimers in the criteria that they are not <br />designed to interpret any obligations under the Compact or the <br />treaties, if the inflows above Lee Ferry and below Lake Powell of <br />about 20,000 acre-feet are added to that total, it just happens to <br />provide for a delivery of 8.25 million acre-feet. This could be <br />interpreted as the Upper Basin's 7.5 million acre-feet per year plus <br />half of the 1.5 million acre-feet that goes to Mexico. Therefore, <br />despite the Upper Basin's objections, the criteria provide that the <br />Upper Basin states are delivering half of the Mexican Treaty <br />obligation, in addition to the 7.5 million acre-feet, annually. <br />Those of you who have been to Lake Powell have seen that the <br />inflows, in the last six years, have not equalled that minimum <br />release. In fact, Lake Powell is about ninety feet down at this point <br />and time. The Bureau of Reclamation estimates that ten years of <br />average conditions would be necessary to refill Lake Powell. <br />Another important aspect of the operating criteria acts in the <br />discussions between the states concerning the operations at Lake Mead. <br />Each year the governor, representatives of the states, and the Bureau <br />of Reclamation meet and discuss the annual operating plan for that <br />year. This year the process has been opened up to include <br />environmental organizations, Indian tribes, and other federal <br />agencies, such as the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife <br />Service. There are many different concerns that are being addressed <br />at this annual operation planning process. In developing this plan, <br />the secretary makes one of three choices for the allocation of water <br />in the lower river. The secretary can declare a normal condition, <br />meaning that 7.5 million acre-feet are available, i.e., California's <br />4.4, Arizona's 2.8, and Nevada's 300,000. If the secretary <br />determines, based on storage conditions in the system, that more water <br />is available then a surplus can be declared. That surplus is <br />apportioned according to a formula among the three lower basin states. <br />If there is a drought situation, the secretary determines whether a <br />shortage situation can be declared, which provides that California, <br />Arizona, and Nevada get less then their basic apportionments. <br />Finally, the criteria and the decree in Arizona versus <br />California, recognized that if one Lower Basin state is not using its <br />basic entitlement, another Lower Basin state can utilize that <br />enti tlement. Another state can, in essence, borrow the unused <br />entitlement. Total Lower Basin uses have been creeping ever closer <br />to the magic 7.5 million acre- foot number. California has been <br />borrowing unused water from Arizona and Nevada. California's total <br />use over the last several years has been about 5.2 million acre-feet, <br />annually. As Arizona develops its entitlement through the Central. <br />Arizona Project, and booming development in Las Vegas continues, the <br />political and legal pressures of reaching that 7.5 million acre-feet <br />are going to be greater and greater. <br />That is an overview of each of the important documents in the Law <br />of the River. Again, I think that the message that can be gained from <br />reviewing the history and the development of the Law of the River, is <br />that it is an integrated operation. <br />Secondly, the Law of the River provides a framework that is based <br /> <br />16 <br />
The URL can be used to link to this page
Your browser does not support the video tag.