After more than three years of negotiations among the seven Colorado River Basin states, the federal government is preparing to release its plan for managing the shrinking river. The U.S. Department of the Interior and Bureau of Reclamation say they expect to release the Final Environmental Impact Statement for post-2026 Colorado River operations this week. The document is expected to identify the federal government’s preferred approach for operating Lake Mead and Lake Powell after the current guidelines expire. … An earlier draft examined five possible approaches but did not identify a preferred alternative. The final document should provide a clearer picture of the direction the Trump administration intends to take.

Other Colorado River management news:

• The Arizona Republic (Phoenix): Feds set to unveil Colorado River plan. How it could hit Arizona
• Arizona Daily Star (Tucson): Arizona expected to take a 31% cut in Colorado River supplies
• Arizona Daily Star (Tucson): Colorado River’s two big lakes drop to lowest water levels on record
• ABC15 (Phoenix): Heat, water concerns challenge AZ farmers as Co. River allocation decisions near
• NBC12 (Phoenix): ‘We are deeply concerned’: Arizona leaders ask Congress for emergency funding to protect Colorado River
• The Desert Review (Brawley, Calif.): Federal proposal could reshape Colorado River management after 2026
• CBS News: Colorado River reservoirs hit record lows as Trump administration threatens major cuts
• USA Today: Cities conserve as Colorado River reservoir faces ‘dead pool’ crisis​