Thirst for Urgency

In the arid climate of Southern Nevada, water is a scarcity many take for granted. There are only 7.1 inches of rainwater per year, leaving water to be allocated from the Colorado River. 

Earlier this year, the Inflation Reduction Act set aside over $1 billion for programs aimed at conserving Colorado River water. Even then, the states which utilize the Colorado River’s water have been in two decades worth of megadrought. Water levels, in Southern Nevada especially, are falling to the point where water managers are worried water may not be able to make it to the downstream reservoirs. Now, the weight of the Colorado River’s past, the current management of water, and the peril of the future, is a complicated narrative.