President Donald Trump is poised to nominate a Western water and agriculture expert with deep ties to California’s Central Valley farm industry to lead the Bureau of Reclamation. The administration intends to nominate Aubrey Bettencourt to the post overseeing the Interior Department’s Western water programs, a White House official confirmed. It’s a move that sidesteps the seven-state brawl over the drought-withered Colorado River that has given the Trump administration a litany of political headaches and led to the withdrawal of the administration’s first nominee for Reclamation, a long-time Arizona water hand who had drawn opposition from powerful Republican officials in Utah and Wyoming.

Other Colorado River management news:

• The Arizona Republic (Phoenix): California farmer in line to lead water agency as river crisis worsens
• Rocky Mountain Community Radio: The Colorado River is at a tipping point, as states, feds look for a way forward​
• KTNV (Las Vegas): ‘Immediate steps must be taken’: Experts warn about possible Colorado River system crash
• Cronkite News: Arizona faces 77% cut in share of Colorado River as states remain deadlocked over water allocation