Arizona has taken the heaviest Colorado River water cuts. Other basin states must step up

There was a lot of Colorado River news last week. But what really happened?

Not nearly enough.

The U.S. Department of the Interior announced that the Colorado River will be in a Tier 2a Colorado River shortage in 2023 under the Drought Contingency Plan (DCP) adopted in 2019.

This was expected, and we at the Central Arizona Project are prepared. It means Arizona will be conserving even more water in Lake Mead than we did this year.

But something much bigger was supposed to happen last week – and it didn’t.

They sounded the alarm, then offered no plan

Earlier this summer, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Touton sounded an alarm – an urgent message that Colorado River Basin water users must conserve four times as much water as we are currently forgoing under the DCP to keep our reservoirs from declining to dangerously low levels.

She challenged the Colorado River basin states to come up with a plan to reach that goal by mid-August.

How it's playing out: What Colorado River cuts mean for parts of California

We expected that plan and the shortage declaration to be announced together. However, the seven states did not come together, despite Arizona’s best efforts.

We have sent a letter to the Department of the Interior and Reclamation expressing our dismay over this outcome.

As basin states, we can’t take more water out of a lake than is flowing in and expect it to survive. That is what is being done today even with the Tier 2a shortage reductions.

It is irresponsible and unless addressed at once puts the Colorado River system and Arizona’s future water supply in jeopardy.

We will do more, but we can't do it alone

So far, CAP and the state of Arizona have taken the vast majority of reductions to support the Colorado River system, both mandatory and voluntary, dating back to 2014. We have contributed the equivalent of 37 feet in elevation to Lake Mead – far more than any other state.

Despite having done so much, we still came to the table willing to do more, if others in the basin were willing to join us.

Arizona can’t solve a problem of this magnitude alone. To be successful, we need a plan that includes mandatory and equitable participation from all water users across the basin. At a minimum, the secretary should immediately allocate system losses among the Lower Basin states and Mexico.

There is no time to waste – as Commissioner Touton and Assistant Interior Secretary Tanya Trujillo made abundantly clear. We sent an urgent request to the Department of the Interior to convene all parties back together to work toward a solution with participation from all states and all interests.

CAP stands ready to do more, but every other Colorado River water user must participate.

And if the states are unwilling or unable to come to agreement, the federal government – as the undisputed “water master” – must take swift action to save the Colorado River from collapse.

Terry Goddard is president of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and Lisa Atkins is the board's immediate past president. Reach them at tgoddard@cap-az.com and latkins@cap-az.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Colorado River water cuts must be shared by all, not just Arizona