Representing one of the most significant pieces of water legislation in four decades and capping years of collaboration, leaders from Metropolitan last week gathered with other Colorado River stakeholders at Hoover Dam to sign the Drought Contingency Plan.
GM Jeff Kightlinger, G
eneral Counsel Marcia Scully,
Chairwoman Gloria Gray and Director Glen Peterson joined representatives from six other western states, Mexico, the Bureau of Reclamation and 10 tribes at the ceremony.
Also attending were Metropolitan staff
Bill Hasencamp
,
Shanti Rosset
and
Meena Westford,
each of whom had
key roles on behalf of the district’s interests.
The DCP will help ensure a more reliable water supply for the 40 million people and 5 million acres of farmland that rely on the Colorado River.
“The tough reality is, between climate change and severe drought, the Colorado River is at risk of critical shortage,”
GM Kightlinger
said. “The fact that we were able to put together such a complex agreement speaks to the cooperation among the states and between the U.S. and Mexico in resolving critical issues.”
The DCP is a bridge solution to keep Lake Mead and Lake Powell from reaching low levels that would trigger delivery cuts and prevent Metropolitan from accessing water stored in Lake Mead.
Thanks
to the DCP and a wet winter in the Colorado River watershed, Met may store as much as 1 million acre-feet in Lake Mead in 2019, more than in any single previous year.
