One thing Arizona,
Colorado,
Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming share in common is getting water from the Colorado River - and being frustrated that California, which takes the most, refuses to join their plan to cut water consumption before it's too late.
Six states have drafted a plan to reduce usage for booming cities like Denver, Las Vegas, and Phoenix but California says it has a better plan, though what it is remains a mystery. Though California wants to keep the status quo - perhaps because the Newsom administration has refused to act on a voter referendum held in limbo since 2014 that went around the do-nothing legislature to build more water storage - the other six states have a simple plan to raise the cutoff limit in Lake Mead and Lake Powell to protect the Colorado River.
Nothing could be easier. California instead says it wants 'voluntary' reductions, which seems strange in a state that made composting mandatory, and now must spend another $5 billion to compost all of the food garbage being shipped to dumps by law.
Voluntary means unenforceable and that may be the reason to hold out, but they are hinting at populism and, ironically, decentralized government. They believe if they don't sign on the Biden administration will come in and force a solution. With a 2024 election for an unpopular president, and California as the top state for Democratic electoral votes, that may mean they feel they can dictate terms.
One thing is clear; no science presented by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is going to matter if it disagrees with what California wants with an election next year.
Colorado Be Dammed: California Refuses Plan To Cut Its River Water Usage
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