Water Law Commons^™

The Colorado River Upper Initial Units Take Center Stage, Eric Kuhn, Anne Castle, Jack Schmidt, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

In 1956, Congress authorized the Upper Initial Units—Flaming Gorge Reservoir,

Navajo Reservoir, and the Aspinall Unit (UIUs)—for a variety of water use

purposes in the Upper Colorado River Basin, including compliance with the

1922 Colorado River Compact (1922 Compact). The historical record is clear

that the primary reason these reservoirs exist is to satisfy the math of the 1922

Compact and the obligations it imposed on the Upper Division States

regarding flows at Lee Ferry.

The Colorado River Water Supply Crisis In A Few Graphs: Part 2 Agricultural Water Use In The Lower Basin, Jack Schmidt, Anne Castle, Eric Kuhn, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

Reductions in Lower Basin water use during the last four years, including

forecast use in 2026, are similar to the initial targets for Lower Basin shortages

described in the Final Environmental Impact Statement for Post-2026

Operational Guidelines and Strategies for Lake Powell and Lake Mead (FEIS)

and the accompanying Record of Decision (ROD).

6 Lower Basin consumptive

use in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and forecast for 2026 has been the smallest for

the entire 2010-2026 period. These four years of smallest use are between 1.4

and 1.7 million acre feet/year (maf/yr) less than the 7.50 maf/yr amount

generally recognized as …

A Significant Moment In The Colorado River Water Supply Crisis, Jack Schmidt, Anne Castle, John Fleck, Eric Kuhn, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

On Sunday, July 12, the surface of Lake Powell was 3524.32 feet above sea level, and the surface of Lake Mead was at 1042.77 ft.7 These elevations equated to 5,505,869 and 7,169,640 acre feet (af), respectively, of live storage in the two reservoirs. The combined total live storage of these reservoirs was 12,675,509 af. The last time the combined total live storage in Lake Powell and Lake Mead was this small was May 23, 1957, during construction of Glen Canyon Dam when the entire amount of 12,668,000 af was stored in Lake Mead.

The Colorado River Water Supply Crisis In A Few Graphs: Part 1, Jack Schmidt, Anne Castle, Eric Kuhn, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

In 2026 and for only the third time in the 21st century, there was no accumulation, and no recovery, of total Basin live storage6 during the snowmelt season. Nor was there any accumulation or recovery of total live storage in Lake Powell and Lake Mead during the 2026 snowmelt season. Total Basin live storage (hereafter, total Basin storage) is all the water available in the Colorado River Basin’s reservoir “savings account” and stored in reservoirs within the watershed.7 On June 1, total Basin storage was 22.94 million acre feet (maf), only 1.62 maf above the previous minimum of March 20238 …

Update: Colorado River Basin Storage Continues Slide Toward System Crash, Anne Castle, Jack Schmidt, Eric Kuhn, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

If the Colorado River Basin (Basin) experiences another dry year, similar to Water Year 2025, it is likely that reasonably accessible storage in Lake Powell and Lake Mead would be mostly depleted, even if consumptive uses and losses are at or near historic lows. Run-of-the-river operations would shortly ensue. This would be an outcome with devastating consequences. In contrast, if next year is very wet, similar to Water Year 2023, the Basin’s largest federal reservoirs would recover somewhat, but would provide only about two years of cushion before we find ourselves again in the same position we are in today, …

Rethinking How The United States And Mexico Share The Colorado River, Eric Kuhn, Anne Castle, Carlos De La Parra, John Fleck, Jack Schmidt, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

Since 1945, the United States and Mexico have managed common interests on their two largest shared rivers systems, the Colorado and the Rio Bravo/Rio Grande, under the terms of the 1944 international treaty that was designed from the beginning with tools to adapt to changing hydrologic and societal conditions. A recent emergency agreement on the Rio Bravo/Rio Grande illustrates what is possible, and with old river management rules on the Colorado both within the United States and between the United States and Mexico about to expire, we are at a moment of opportunity for meaningful change. The core problem on …

Comments On The Draft Environmental Impact Statement On Post-2026 Operational Guidelines And Strategies For Lake Powell And Lake Mead, Anne Castle, John Fleck, Eric Kuhn, Jack Schmidt, Katherine Tara, Kathryn Sorensen

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

Thank you for the opportunity to submit comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement on Post-2026 Operational Guidelines and Strategies for Lake Powell and Lake Mead (DEIS). The undersigned colleagues with experience in Colorado River matters commend the Bureau of Reclamation and its consultants for the tremendous effort involved in preparing this environmental impact analysis. We are especially impressed by Reclamation’s effort to analyze policy alternatives within the context of the deep uncertainty about what future hydrology might be. Your work is novel in its effort to provide the public with a sense of what the performance, robustness, and vulnerability …

Lake Powell And Lake Mead Are Moving In Opposite Directions -- What Gives?, Jack Schmidt, Eric Kuhn, Anne Castle, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

No abstract provided.

Considerations For Assigned Water After Expiration Of The 2007 Guidelines, Kathryn Sorensen, Sarah Porter, Anne Castle, John Fleck, Eric Kuhn, Jack Schmidt, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

As Colorado River supplies and demands reach razor-thin margins, new tools to provide adaptive capacity will play a critical role in sustaining communities across the West. We must reduce our consumption of water, while finding ways to cushion the impact. One of the most innovative tools for doing this, developed over the last two decades, is “Assigned Water” - giving users the ability to store conserved water earmarked for their own future use. Originally developed as “Intentionally Created Surplus” in the 2007 Colorado River Interim Guidelines, Assigned Water has been revised and expanded through U.S. Mexico Treaty Minutes and as …

Cobalt's Climate Paradox: Global Ambitions For A Greener Future Rely On Blood-Stained Hands, Ashleigh Wootton

Natural Resources Journal

The global effort to mitigate climate change increasingly relies on widespread electrification, with lithium-ion batteries at its core and the key minerals required for their production concentrated in countries uniquely vulnerable to exploitation. Lithium-ion battery production relies heavily on cobalt, a critical mineral primarily sourced from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which supplies approximately 70 percent of the world’s cobalt. As demand for cobalt is projected to rise sharply, the DRC has become indispensable to the global clean energy transition. Cobalt extraction in the DRC is closely linked to severe human rights abuses, including forced labor, child labor, …

Analysis Of Colorado River Basin Storage Suggests Need For Immediate Action, Jack Schmidt, Anne Castle, John Fleck, Eric Kuhn, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

Consumptive water use in the Colorado River Basin continues to outpace natural flow. The dwindling reserve stored in reservoirs that has long sustained this shortfall might soon be exhausted. Immediate steps should be taken to reduce current consumptive uses in the Upper and Lower Basins.

Awaiting The Colorado River 24-Month Study, John Fleck, Anne Castle, Eric Kuhn, Jack Schmidt, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

No abstract provided.

Essential Pillars For The Post-2026 Colorado River Guidelines, Anne Castle, John Fleck, Eric Kuhn, Jack Schmidt, Kathryn Sorensen, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

The process for determining the operating rules for the Colorado River system that will take effect in 2027 is in full swing. While various alternative operating regimes have been proposed, no preferred or consensus alternative has yet emerged. As a group of experienced Colorado River colleagues without affiliation to any Basin State, Tribe, or interested stakeholder, we submit that there are fundamental principles that should form the basis of the ultimate Record of Decision defining management of the Colorado River for the future. We propose the following essential pillars for inclusion in the Post-2026 Guidelines.

Reservoir Storage In Mid-March: Where Do We Stand?, Jack Schmidt, John Fleck, Kathryn Sorensen, Eric Kuhn, Katherine Tara

The Traveling Wilburys of the Colorado River

No abstract provided.

Surviving The Megadrought, Warigia Bowman

Faculty Scholarship

According to NASA, the Earth experienced its hottest day in recorded history on July 22, 2024, surpassing the previous hottest day, which was set in 2023. The year 2024 will enter the record books as the hottest year since pre-industrial times. The temperatures in 2024 exceeded the year 2023, during which the average global surface temperature was the warmest ever recorded in the past 174 years. These meteorological facts—although alarming on their own—are the backdrop for the legal analysis contained in this Article. The driest states in the Southwest, including Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah, have long relied …

Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act Of 2022, United States 117th Congress

Native American Water Rights Settlement Project

The purposes of this Act are—(1) to resolve, fully and finally, all claims to rights to water in the State, including the Verde River, the Bill Williams River, and the Colorado River, of— (A) the Hualapai Tribe, on behalf of the Hualapai Tribe and the members of the Hualapai Tribe; and (B) the United States, acting as trustee for the Hualapai Tribe, the members of the Hualapai Tribe, and the allottees; (2) to authorize, ratify, and confirm the Hualapai Tribe water rights settlement agreement, to the extent that agreement is consistent with this Act; (3) to authorize and direct the …

Colorado River Indian Tribes Water Resiliency Act Of 2022, United States 117th Congress

Native American Water Rights Settlement Project

This Act authorizes the Colorado River Indian Tribes to enter into lease or exchange agreements and storage agreements relating to water of the Colorado River allocated to the Colorado River Indian Tribes, and for other purposes.

White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Act, United States 117th Congress

Native American Water Rights Settlement Project

The purpose of this amendment to the White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Act of 2010 is to extend the enforceability date for the deadline for publication of the statement of findings to December 30, 2027 with a repeal date of December 31, 2027 of Title III of the Act for failure to meet the revised deadline. Certain provisions include clarifying funding, cost indexing, cost overrun subaccount (increase in authorized appropriations and prohibition), use of funds (expenditures), oversight and accounting, and other purposes.

2023 Update: A Water Rights Manual For Mutual Domestic Water Consumers Associations, Utton Center, Zackeriah Carpenter, Gregory Chakalian, Darcy S. Bushnell

Publications

This is the 2023 update of the Water Rights Manual. The archival version is also available in our digital repository. 

The Utton Center prepared this Water Rights Manual to assist Mutual Domestic Water Consumers Associations (MDWCAs) with the development, protection and management of their water rights.

This manual provides an introduction to and defines Water Rights in New Mexico, as well as to acquire and have recognized Water Rights. This document also covers water management and planning, and provides additional resources.

Facing New Mexico's 21st Century Water Challenges; A Report Of The New Mexico Water Policy And Infrastructure Task Force, New Mexico Water And Infrastructure Task Force N/A

Publications

No abstract provided.

A Contentious Mission: Water Supply And Corps Of Engineers Reservoirs, Reed D. Benson

Faculty Scholarship

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers operates hundreds of multi-purpose reservoirs nationwide, many of which provide water for municipal and industrial purposes. Demands for water from Corps reservoirs are sure to grow, and Congress has ordered the Corps to report on whether water supply should become a primary mission of the agency. The Corps has experienced controversy over water supply decisions, including disputes involving its Missouri River reservoirs and Lake Lanier in Georgia. When the Corps proposed a national Water Supply Rule in 2016 it drew significant opposition, forcing the agency to withdraw the rule and reassess its policies. This …

Borders And Water Conflicts: Mitigating Conflicts With Love And Cooperation, Peter J. Longo, Anthony B. Schutz, James M. Scott

Natural Resources Journal

Borders are political constructs, not constructs derived from laws of nature. Borders carry more potential for conflict than any other matter in political relations. In international relations, wars have been fought over borders and territory. But, territory does not necessarily entail a dispute about the geographic location of a border. Trans-boundary natural resources disputes emerge because the laws of nature do not bend to this peculiar human construct. As much can be seen in international and intra-state water conflicts, where political boundaries provide individuals with a tribal identity that eclipses the power of natural resources to tie people together in …

Aamodt Litigation Settlement Completion, United States 116th Congress

Native American Water Rights Settlement Project

Amends the Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act (Pub. L. 11-291) to increase funding for Pueblo Water Facilities from $106.4 million to $243.4 million and making available $137 million for Regional Water System funding.

Navajo-Utah Water Rights Settlement Act, United States 116th Congress

Native American Water Rights Settlement Project

The purposes of this section are: (1) to achieve a fair, equitable, and final settlement of all claims to water rights in the State of Utah for (A) the Navajo Nation and (B) the United States, for the benefit of the Nation; (2) to authorize, ratify, and confirm the agreement entered into by the Nation and the State, to the extent that the agreement is consistent with this section; (3) to authorize and direct the Secretary (A) to execute the agreement and (B) to take any actions necessary to carry out the agreement in accordance with this section; and (4) …

Montana Water Rights Protection Act, United States 116th Congress

Native American Water Rights Settlement Project

The purposes of this Act are: (1) to achieve a fair, equitable, and final settlement of claims to water rights in the State of Montana, and in recognition of article I, and section 3 of article IX, of the Montana State Constitution for (A) the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Indian Reservation; and (B) the United States, for the benefit of the Tribes and allottees; (2) to authorize, ratify, and confirm the water rights compact entered into by the Tribes and the State, to the extent that the Compact is consistent with this Act; (3) to authorize …

Argument Analysis: On First Day Of New Term, Supreme Court Seems Skeptical Of Texas’ Arguments In Interstate Water Dispute With New Mexico, Reed D. Benson

Faculty Scholarship

Find out more information regarding Texas v. New Mexico at SCOTUSblog.

Read more about Professor Reed Benson's involvement on the UNM Law News Page.

Case Preview: In Newest Chapter In Long-Running Water Dispute, Court Will Hear First-Ever Challenge To Ruling By Interstate River Master, Reed D. Benson

Faculty Scholarship

Find out more information regarding Texas v. New Mexico at SCOTUSblog.

Read more about Professor Reed Benson's involvement on the UNM Law News Page.

Acknowledgement, Melanie Mcnett, Julia Shaver

Natural Resources Journal

No abstract provided.

Front Matter, Natural Resources Journal

Natural Resources Journal

No abstract provided.

The Long View Of The Water/Energy Nexus: Hydropower’S First Century In The U.S.A., Carl J. Bauer

Natural Resources Journal

This paper offers a historical overview of the first century of hydropower in the US from today’s perspective of the water/energy nexus. Hydropower emerged as a technology in the 1880s and its development expanded until large dam building ended in the US in the 1970s-1980s. I summarize the century from the two different angles of the water sector and the electric power sector, as the roles and strategic importance of hydropower changed dramatically in the two sectors, in the parallel histories of water development and electric power development. The paper emphasizes the electricity side of the hydropower story because the …