They may have more water than most — hundreds of miles from fallowing farms in Arizona or browning lawns in Los Angeles — but they know that on the Colorado River system, the massive, unchecked demand for water downstream is threat to everything upstream. “In this section of the United States, the key is water,” John F. Kennedy said during the 1963 dedication ceremony of Flaming Gorge Dam. And when the federal Bureau of Reclamation and four Upper Colorado River Basin states agreed to release 500,000 acre-feet — 1/6 of the reservoir’s capacity — to help desiccated communities to the south, it created a local uproar. I mean, that’s people’s livelihoods.”“We’re concerned,” said Woody Bair, co-owner of the Flaming Gorge Resort, while leaning on shelves brimming with hand-tied flies. “How long can we do this?” Williams said of the Flaming Gorge releases.

Source: CNN June 19, 2022 05:54 UTC