Denver Water is pulling more water from rivers, creeks and communities in Grand County to refill its reservoirs after a record-hot summer, sparking pushback from some western Coloradans. Denver Water’s reservoirs — the water storage for 1.5 million people — are far lower than normal for this time of the year. The utility has issued mandatory restrictions, which means it can also increase the amount of water it pulls from certain streams and rivers on the Western Slope for the Denver area. … Denver Water has some of the oldest rights to water in the area, which means it has priority over more recent, junior water users under Colorado water law. The utility’s water management is guided by agreements made in past decades, like the 1992 Clinton Reservoir-Fraser River Water Agreement and the 2013 Colorado River Cooperative Agreement.

Other Colorado River management news:

• The Arizona Republic (Phoenix): Here’s how much of your tap water comes from the Colorado River
• The Arizona Republic (Phoenix): Arizona banked Colorado River water for years. Now it’s time to use it
• The Wall Street Journal: Video: The 100-year-old math miscalculation that broke the Colorado River
• The Land Desk: Blog: Deadpool Data Dump: Lake Powell’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad water year