The Southern Nevada Water Authority has agreed to leave some of its water in Lake Mead this year in exchange for cash to comply with what water managers expect to be a firm requirement to do so through 2028. At a board meeting Thursday, directors ratified an agreement between the water authority and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation that gives Nevada $16.25 million in federal funds for conserving an amount equal to one-sixth of its total Colorado River allocation. In 2026, the authority will leave 50,000 acre-feet in Lake Mead — the struggling reservoir that supplies about 90 percent of Southern Nevada’s water supply and is falling to new record lows each month.

Other Colorado River management news:

• FOX13 (Salt Lake City): Letting go of Lake Powell is ‘never going to happen,’ Cox promises
• Colorado Newsline: As litigation looms and drought takes its toll, state officials defiant over Colorado River’s future
• Colorado Politics (Denver): Attorney General candidates present priorities at Colorado Water Congress
• Voice of San Diego: Arizona wants to suck water supplies from Mexico’s Sea of Cortez
• ABC4 (Salt Lake City): New option allows Utah water right holders to support local ecosystems
• Manteca Bulletin (Calif.): Editorial: Colorado River woes could eventually become a Manteca issue
• John Fleck at Inkstain: Blog: The Colorado River Compact is a dead parrot
• Maven’s Notebook: Blog: Colorado River operations enter era of near-continuous negotiation