WASHINGTON – The United States House of Representatives passed two amendments this past Thursday that would provide $5 million in funding to water projects in Colorado and the Southwest.
The amendments, introduced by U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, added to the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act redirect funding from the Department of Energy’s Departmental Administration Account to the Colorado River Storage Project and Colorado River Dam Fund.
The Colorado River Storage Project will receive $1 million in funding and $4 million in funding from the Colorado River Dam Fund.
“The West is in the midst of a serious water crisis that can no longer be overlooked,” Boebert said in a news release.
The Colorado River Compact signed in 1922 includes Arizona, California and Nevada, which make up the Lower Basin states. The Upper Basin states also included Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. The river, which has been in a 23-year drought, supplies water to 40 million people and 29 Native American tribes, as well as parts of Mexico.
Back in May, California, Nevada and Arizona agreed to significantly reduce the amount of water that they take from the Colorado River over the next three years. While cuts don’t affect Colorado, the amendments passed with the recent Act would aid in critical water storage and could assist with dams in Southwest Colorado such as the Blue Mesa, Crystal and Morrow Point Dams.
While Durango relies on water supply from the Florida and Animas Rivers, it also experiences issues with limited water storage capacity, with storage abilities of less than 10 days, according to Water Education Colorado.
Research by the Silverton-based Mountain Studies Institute shows that annual precipitation has also significantly decreased over the last 30 years.
whansen@durangoherald.com
