"Officials call the move a short-term fix that will bank on robust snowpack to replenish waning reservoirs supplies in the Upper Basin "
"Officials in the Upper Colorado River Basin plan to continue draining Flaming Gorge in Wyoming to protect Lake Powell, one of the basin’s largest reservoirs.
The Colorado River Basin, which extends from Colorado to California and northern Mexico, uses a network of reservoirs to store vital water supplies for cities, farms, recreation, the environment and millions of people. But the basin’s overall storage has dropped to a third of its capacity, officials said during an Upper Colorado River Basin meeting Monday.
Lake Powell holds about 22% of its total capacity. Since April, the Bureau of Reclamation has released about 450,000 acre-feet of water to help boost storage in Lake Powell. Colorado and other Upper Basin state officials agreed Monday that those releases should continue through April."
Shannon Mullane reports for the Colorado Sun September 15, 2026.
