Some of the state’s most powerful and influential people huddled around tables in a conference room on Utah’s Capitol Hill for a “war games” exercise over the Colorado River. … Thursday’s tabletop exercise put political leaders, experts, advocates and others in a room for hours, working through scenarios for getting more water into the Colorado River Basin in Utah. While the Colorado River’s issues are multi-state, Thursday’s exercise kept it focused on Utah. … Congresswoman Celeste Maloy, whose congressional district includes the Colorado River, said the war games exercise considered a whole gamut of ideas like piping water into Utah, desalination exchanges with other states, expanded conservation measures and water re-use. She said it can have real-world policy implications.

Other Colorado River management news:

• The Colorado Sun (Denver): Arizona water heavyweight joins Colorado River lawsuit against Trump administration
• Arizona’s Family (Phoenix): Recent storms boost Arizona reservoir levels, but Colorado River crisis persists
• The Center Square: Central Arizona Project joins Colorado River lawsuit
• Smart Water Magazine: Central Arizona Project moves to join Nevada lawsuit over Colorado River cuts