June 27, 2023
A wet winter in 2023 means slightly more water in 2024 for Southern Nevadans who rely on the Colorado River. According to a United States Bureau of Reclamation report released Tuesday, the state will see only a 7 percent reduction in its water allocation in 2024 — compared to the 8 percent, about 25,000 acre-feet, it saw this year — due to ongoing drought conditions.
In a reversal that marks a significant victory for conservationists, federal officials have decided to "revisit" the 2021 environmental review that cleared the way for construction of a geothermal power plant in Nevada where an endangered toad lives. Environmentalists and tribal leaders suing to block the project said the move will trigger an unprecedented third review of the partially built power plant that they say the Bureau of Land Management illegally approved in December 2021.
A public process started earlier this month to reshape the way Colorado River water is distributed, with federal officials promising to collect comments about updating and enacting rules in 2027 to continue providing hydropower, drinking water and irrigation to farms, cities and tribes in seven Western U.S. states and Mexico.
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