Colorado River doomsday averted? Some hopeful but top water official mum
The nation’s top Western water official visited the Coachella Valley on Thursday to highlight federal funding for infrastructure that carries Colorado River water to area farm fields. The visit comes during a break in heavy winter storms across the West that are buoying hopes among regional water officials for a temporary reprieve on potentially huge cuts to river supply. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Touton was mum on whether heavy snowpack in the Rockies and elsewhere could push back massive reductions she told Congress last spring were necessary to keep the river and its reservoirs afloat. But California officials are cautiously optimistic that major reductions could be averted this year. Noting that overall river flows this year are now forecast to be 113% of average thanks to “huge snowpack” in the Rockies and elsewhere …
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- Spokesman Review: The Rockies are brimming with snow. The drought will persist anyway.