Colorado River

The Colorado River is a major river of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, flowing from the Rocky Mountains toward the Gulf of California. Dams and water diversions now leave its lower channel dry before it reaches the sea in most years.

Colorado River Basin: The drainage area whose streams and rivers ultimately flow into the Colorado River. Its snow-fed tributaries supply the main river and determine how much water enters the system.
Rocky Mountains: A major mountain range in western North America that includes the Colorado River’s headwaters. Snowmelt from its western slopes feeds the river’s source streams.
Central Arizona Project: A canal system that delivers Colorado River water to central and southern Arizona. It carries river water to Phoenix, Tucson, and agricultural districts.
Lake Mead: The reservoir on the Colorado River formed by Hoover Dam, bordering Nevada and Arizona. Its shrinking levels reveal the effects of drought and sustained water withdrawals.
Aridification of the American West: The long-term shift toward drier conditions across the western United States. Warming reduces runoff and intensifies pressure on the river’s already allocated supplies.
Colorado River Compact: A 1922 agreement dividing the Colorado River’s water between the Upper Basin and Lower Basin states. Its allocations govern interstate claims on a river whose actual supply is highly variable.
Colorado Plateau: A high, arid region of the southwestern United States marked by layered rocks and deep canyons. The river cuts through this plateau, exposing its geological layers.
Imperial Valley: An agricultural region in southeastern California irrigated largely with Colorado River water. Its farms depend on a large share of California’s river allocation.
Lake Powell: The reservoir on the Colorado River formed by Glen Canyon Dam in Utah and Arizona. Its storage and releases shape water supplies and downstream river conditions.
Colorado River Compact renegotiation: Efforts to revise Colorado River operating rules as existing agreements approach expiration and water supplies shrink. New rules must address persistent shortages that the original allocations did not anticipate.

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