Arizona backs Nevada suit against Washington’s Colorado River cuts
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Arizona moved to join Nevada’s federal lawsuit opposing the Interior Department’s new Colorado River framework, saying the plan would unfairly slash water deliveries to Lower Basin states and threaten Arizona’s economy and infrastructure.
Arizona announced Friday that it will intervene in Nevada's federal lawsuit contesting the Interior Department's new operating framework for the Colorado River. The state argues the plan would cut water deliveries to the Lower Basin—Arizona, California and Nevada—by about 20 percent over the next two years and could impose deeper reductions, a heavy-handed federal move that puts vital Western water supplies at risk.
"Like Nevada, Arizona believes the federal government’s new operating framework ignores basic elements of the law of the river and could result in cuts that would devastate Arizona's economy," said Tom Buschatzke, director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources.
Buschatzke warned that the steepest cuts permitted by the plan could "effectively dry up" the Central Arizona Project, a major water conveyance system serving much of the state. The Interior Department has not responded to a request for comment.