This tour explored the lower Colorado River where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.

The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs is the focus of this tour. 

This 3-day, 2-night tour traveled along the Lower Colorado River from Hoover Dam to the Salton Sea and the Coachella Valley, including a boat trip through scenic Topock Gorge. Along the way, experts discussed challenges related to what is the most contested, beloved for recreation and meticulously managed river in the United States.

What attendees say about this tour:

“This tour was so well put together. You guys did a spectacular job. The topics were relevant, the speakers good, the other participants fun and knowledgeable. You could offer consulting services on how to do tours!”

“Being able to visit places most can’t, with a good explanation – Copper Basin in particular.”

“Great range of speakers. Great to meet fellow tour participants. Interesting locations to visit. Intensive (in a good way).”

Planned Stops Included:

• Hoover Dam
• Lake Mead Visitor Center
• Central Arizona Project facilities
• Havasu National Wildlife Refuge
• Whitsett Intake Pumping Plant, Copper Basin & other Metropolitan Water District of Southern California facilities
• Farms in the Palo Verde, Imperial & Coachella valleys
• The Salton Sea
• Imperial Dam

Topics Included:

• Drought conditions & contingency planning in the Colorado River Basin
• Lower Basin state perspectives – Arizona, California & Nevada
• The Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA)
• Warren H. Brock Storage Reservoir & lining the All-American Canal
• Binational water management 
• Agricultural water use, drainage issues & salinity
• Urban use, history & development
• The Colorado River Basin Study
• Endangered species & the Multi-Species Conservation Program (MSCP)
• Salton Sea restoration 
• Climate change

Tour Start and End Point:

The tour started at 7:30 a.m. on March 11 at the Silverton Hotel in Las Vegas and ended at the Ontario International Airport in California at 6:30 p.m. on March 13.

There was a ticket option called the “California Option,” which is an inclusive ticket that starts and ends the tour in California. It is designed for state agency employees, but is open to any participant who wanted transportation the day before the tour from Ontario Airport in Southern California to Las Vegas on March 10 and a hotel room that same night in Las Vegas. The additional cost of transit and your hotel on the night of March 10 are included in this ticket. Contact Nick Gray with any questions.

Pricing Details:

Regular Price – $895 (one person, single-occupancy room)

Early Bird Price – $865 if you register online by January 29. Click on the registration link above.

Fee included all meals, transportation, materials, snacks and hotel accommodations once the tour begins. Participants were responsible for their own transportation to and from the tour’s beginning and end point.

Cancellation and Refund Policy:

Deadline to cancel and receive a refund was three weeks prior to the first day of the tour due to hotel, meal and transportation bookings. Substitutions were allowed up to five business days before the tour. Eventbrite fees are nonrefundable and the remaining amount may be subject to an additional 10% processing fee.

Continuing Education Credits:

Continuing education credits were available for California attorneys for an additional fee, and may be available for water plant/wastewater plant operators and other vocations/professions.