Lake Mead reaches lowest level in nine decades as Colorado River drought deepens

Lake Mead, the United States' largest reservoir, recorded a water level of 1,040.4 feet (317.1 meters) above sea level on Friday, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The measurement is just below the previous low set on July 28, 2022.

J.B. Hamby, chairman of the Colorado River Board of California and a board member of the Imperial Irrigation District, said the decline is significant because it affects roughly 30 million people who depend on the Colorado River.

The drop follows a winter that produced the basin's lowest snowpack on record, reducing runoff that normally feeds the river. Combined with prolonged drought, higher temperatures and decades of water overuse, the situation has also lowered levels in Lake Powell, the second-largest reservoir, to historic lows.

Federal officials announced that water releases from Glen Canyon Dam will be limited to protect the humpback chub, a native fish species whose habitat lies between the two reservoirs. A short-term federal proposal urges Arizona, California and Nevada to reduce their water withdrawals, with the possibility of deeper cuts during drier periods while states negotiate a longer-term allocation plan.

In 2022, low levels at Lake Mead forced Las Vegas water managers to draw water from deeper in the reservoir, and boat ramps at Lake Powell have been relocated or closed as water depths receded. Nine of the 54 western reservoirs tracked by the Bureau of Reclamation have recorded their lowest levels in the past 30 years.

Modeling conducted in July projects that Lake Mead's level will continue to decline for much of the remainder of the year.