In mid-December, stakeholders from across the Colorado River basin gathered in Las Vegas for the annual Colorado River Water Users Association (CRUWA) conference to discuss happenings within the Colorado River basin. At this year's conference, the focus was on the Drought Contingency Plans (one for the Upper Basin and one for the Lower Basin) which help to deal with the very real possibility of shortages in the water supply of the Colorado River. At CRUWA, both the Upper and Lower Basin States agreed to move forward toward the completion of a Drought Contingency Plan (DCP).

The driving force behind the Upper Basin DCP is the need to reduce the increasing risk of a compact driven curtailment or cut to water users in the Upper Basin States. This scenario is also referred to as a “Compact Call”. A Compact Call would occur if the Upper Basin States are unable to deliver the water they are required to deliver under the rules of the 1922 Colorado River Compact to the Lower Basin States. Overuse of water, aridification of the West due to climate change, and growing populations throughout the basin are putting extreme pressure on the Colorado River.

Join us for Part 1 of our two part series to learn more about what curtailment or a “Compact Call” on the Colorado River means for people and the environment, how it could happen, and why the DCP is so important. Listen to Jim Lochhead, CEO of Denver Water and Andy Mueller, General Manager of the Colorado River Conservation District discuss what it means for Colorado.

Please note that throughout this episode all referenced reservoir water levels are specific to the time this episode was recorded during the summer of 2018. For updated reservoir levels, you can directly visit a reservoir’s website.

Photo Credit: Upper Colorado River, Joshua Duplechian - Trout Unlimited