53°F
weather icon Clear

Lake Powell drops to lowest level in reservoir’s history

Lake Powell, the country’s second largest reservoir, reached its lowest water level on record this weekend, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

The bureau’s website showed that the lake in Northern Arizona and Southern Utah on Friday had dropped to 3,555.09 feet, just below the previous record low elevation set in April 2005 at 3,555.1 feet.

The lake stood at 3,554.9 feet as of Saturday, according to the bureau.

“This is a benchmark moment,” Kyle Roerink, executive director of the Great Basin Water Network, said Sunday. “And it’s not going to be the last one this summer.”

Becki Bryant, a bureau spokeswoman in the Upper Colorado Basin, previously told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that smaller snowpack, hotter temperatures, less precipitation and dry soils soaking up runoff all contributed to less water flowing into the Colorado River system.

In the first six months of the year, Lake Powell received 2.5 million acre-feet less water than was expected, she said.

The Bureau of Reclamation said this month that additional water from upstream reservoirs will be released this year to prop up Lake Powell. Lake level decline will likely continue until runoff season begins next year.

Roerink said Lake Powell’s declining water levels are indicative of a larger problem in water conservation.

“This calls for our society to question how we manage things moving forward,” he said.

Bryant has said the bureau will continue working with Upper Colorado Basin states on a drought response operations plan.

The additional water being released into Lake Powell this year will not affect how much water is released downstream to Lake Mead, which is nearing its first federally declared water shortage, federal officials have said. A shortage declaration will lead to cuts next year in Nevada’s allocation of Colorado River water.

Last month, Lake Mead broke its previous record low elevation of 1,071.61 feet, and water levels have kept declining. That’s expected to continue until at least November, when agricultural demand for water decreases, according to Patti Aaron, the Bureau of Reclamation spokeswoman for the Lower Colorado Basin.

Echoing Roerink’s concerns, Bronson Mack, spokesman for the Southern Nevada Water Authority, has said that Lake Mead and Lake Powell’s low water levels reaffirm the need to focus on conservation.

Contact Blake Apgar at bapgar@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5298. Follow @blakeapgar on Twitter. Review-Journal staff writer Jonah Dylan contributed to this report.

Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.
THE LATEST
Beatty riled by sheriff’s substation closure

Lone staffer will be relocated to Pahrump to help with workload there; be onsite in Beatty just once a month.

Sales tax question headed to the ballot

Road conditions in the Pahrump Valley are a sore point for many drivers as well as a source of frustration for the crews dedicated to maintaining them but with only so many road dollars to go around, it can be hard to keep pace with the demand.

How historical storytelling is highlighting Tonopah attractions

Preserving history for generations to come while simultaneously boosting tourism – that’s the goal of Tonopah Main Street: Historical Storytelling, a project that’s using the digital age to promote all of the fascinating facts about the bygone days of Tonopah.

Bake sale rakes in $2k for splash pad shade

Pahrump Mother’s Corner is on a mission to see the town of Pahrump build a community splash pad but this group of local parents is doing more than just advocating for the project – they are actively raising money to assist with paying for what they all feel will be a crucial addition to it, a shade structure.

The Veterans Extravaganza – an information hub for former military

The 7th Annual Cles Saunders Memorial Veterans’ Extravaganza took place last week, giving former military service members a chance to learn all about the various resources the area has to offer.

Want to be the county clerk? Applications due March 13

Nye County Clerk Mark Kampf announced his pending resignation last week and the Nye County Commission must now select someone to assume the soon-to-be-vacated office.

Older resident dies in fire

Pahrump Valley Fire and Rescue Services, along with the Nevada State Fire Marshal’s office are investigating the exact cause of a structure fire that claimed the life of a man early Wednesday morning.

How has the town fared with Fall Festival? Here’s an overview

When the Pahrump Valley Chamber of Commerce made the decision to divest itself of the Pahrump Fall Festival, the town of Pahrump stepped in to reassume the popular community event.