美国政府因干旱与过度使用计划大幅削减科罗拉多河供水

US government planning dramatic Colorado River water cuts due to drought, overuse

May 15, 2026 4:35 PM UTC / Reuters

By Andrew Hay

May 15, 2026 4:35 PM UTC Updated 1 min ago

[1/2]Tourists look at the Colorado River from Glen Canyon Dam near Page, Arizona, U.S., May 15, 2025. REUTERS/Rebecca Noble/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

• Summary

• Federal plan could cut Arizona, California, Nevada water use by up to 40%
• Proposed cuts nearly double previous state offer, aim to stabilize depleted reservoirs

May 15 (Reuters) – The U.S. government has proposed a new water-sharing ​plan for the drought-stricken Colorado River that could cut up to 40% of current ‌supplies to Arizona, California and Nevada, according to a senior Arizona official.

With a 20-year-old plan expiring this year, and talks between seven states that share the river at an impasse, the federal government late last week intervened with a strategy to ​deal with severe water shortages, according to Tom Buschatzke, director of the Arizona Department of Water ​Resources.

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The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation proposed a 10-year plan in which Arizona, California and ⁠Nevada would potentially cut water use by up to 3 million acre-feet per year to maintain water ​levels in Lake Mead and Lake Powell, the river’s severely depleted reservoirs, Buschatzke told a meeting of Arizona ​water stakeholders on Wednesday. Three million acre-feet of water is enough to supply 6 million to 9 million households for one year, more than the number of homes in Arizona and Nevada.

NEARLY TWICE THE CUTS AS BEFORE

The maximum possible federal cuts, ​which would be reviewed every two years based on water levels, are nearly twice as large as ​a May 1 offer by those three lower-basin states to reduce their water use by 1.6 million acre-feet per year.

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“Given the ‌risk ⁠and uncertainty facing the Basin, these elements are designed to provide stability while allowing flexibility to incorporate consensus-based recommendations as they develop,” the Bureau of Reclamation said in a statement on its proposal, without providing further details.

Buschatzke said the federal plan would be either implemented under existing Colorado River law or through agreements ​among the states. He said ​federal officials had indicated ⁠that water cuts across the three lower-basin states would be based on the “priority of the law of the river.” That law, the 1922 Colorado River Compact, ​gives California the highest priority for water use.

Buschatzke described the proposed federal cuts ​as “sobering.”

“That’s us, that’s ⁠Arizona, and potentially CAP going to zero,” said Buschatzke, referring to water flows on the Central Arizona Project, a canal that transports Colorado River water to central and southern Arizona.

Water releases from Powell and Mead, which serve ⁠seven ​states, would range from 5 million to 12 million acre-feet per ​year under the federal plan.

“I think we all know that unless Mother Nature starts doing her job, it’s going to be closer ​to the bottom end of this range,” said Buschatzke.

Reporting by Andrew Hay in New Mexico Editing by Rod Nickel

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