The West accepts its drought-ridden future, slashes water use
Out West, the future is dry. Amid an unprecedented 19-year drought in the expansive Colorado River Basin — which supplies water to 40 million Americans — seven Western states have acknowledged that the 21st century will only grow drier as temperatures continue to rise. And that means less water in the 1,450-mile Colorado River. On Tuesday, water managers from states including California, Utah, and New Mexico announced a drought plan (formally called a Drought Contingency Plan), which cuts their water use for the next seven years — until an even more austere plan must be adopted. Already, the drought has left water levels at Lake Mead — the nearly 250-square-mile reservoir that's held back by the formidable Hoover Dam — at their lowest levels in half a century. The water shortage has left telltale, white mineral "bathtub rings" around the basin, well over 100 feet high. Read more...More about Science, Global Warming, Drought, Climate Change, and Colorado River