Scholars and water officials assembled to tackle the management of the Colorado River at the University of Utah yesterday, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. From the article, "The Colorado Compact, which divides Colorado River water among seven Western states, is now 85 years old and in many ways is showing its age. A record-setting drought. Explosive growth in Phoenix, Las Vegas and St. George. Climate change. Lake Mead and Lake Powell as recreation nirvanas. The state water commissioners who negotiated the agreement had no way to foresee any of those developments in 1922...
"Humility, perhaps more than anything else, is what is needed most as policymakers, their critics and the Colorado River's multiple users go forward in shaping the management of the river in the coming decades, Limerick said in opening the Stegner Center's 12th annual symposium, titled 'The Colorado River Compact in the 21st Century: Time for Change?' The timing of the conference is auspicious. The seven basin states last year, after months of negotiations, reached an agreement on how to manage the river during water shortages and drought conditions. That agreement was one of the alternatives unveiled earlier this week as the Bureau of Reclamation moves forward with an environmental impact statement that will determine future shortage guidelines for river users...
"Going forward, [University of Colorado professor Patty Limerick] says the great test will be figuring out if democracy and conservation can coexist. More specifically she argues that any meaningful reforms must: Deal with the proliferation of uses on the river and rise of environmental regulations since 1922; Include realistic estimates of what the river can actually deliver, and creative ways to deal with the new reality; Begin a transition from the 'us-versus-them' mentality of the upper basin states (Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico) and their lower basin counterparts (Arizona, Nevada, California) toward the idea of one big basin with shared interests; Accept the notion that efficiency and conservation of river resources 'are no longer options. We have to separate our desires from our needs.'"
"colorado water"
5:59:49 AM 
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