Lake Mead

The seven states that rely on the Colorado River need to figure out who will take cuts to water usage as climate change worsens drought in the basin. The federal government needs to start an environmental review process in order to have any new operating guidelines in place by October.

Leaders of environmental groups are issuing fresh warnings this week about the impacts the ongoing gridlock could have in the river basin.

Four days of negotiations in a Salt Lake City conference room earlier this month did not appear to have sparked a breakthrough.

The federal government declared an official water shortage on the Colorado River for the first time ever, and that means cuts in the water supply; Montezuma County has released a resource guide for residents who are struggling to pay rent or mortgage payments during the pandemic.

The lake is currently at its lowest level since it was filled in the 1930s.