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A plan to address the contraction in the water supply of a river that serves 40 million people in the western United States is headed by President Donald Trump.
The United States Senate and House approved Monday the Colorado Drought Response Plan.
Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming have spent years negotiating the plan against drought. They aim to prevent the fall of two key tanks so low that they can neither supply water nor produce hydroelectric power.
Mexico has pledged to stock water in Lake Mead, on the border between Arizona and Nevada, if US legislation was approved by April 22.
Water managers in states and federal authorities have relied on prolonged drought, climate change and a rising demand for river flows as reasons to reduce the use of water. water. The agreement runs until 2026.
In the lower basin, Arizona and Nevada would conserve water in Lake Mead when it falls to certain levels. The cuts would eventually reverberate in California if Lake Mead's level dropped enough.
The measure approved on Monday reflects the wording proposed by the states, but also includes a section in which the implementation of the drought plan will not be exempted from federal environmental laws.
The Imperial Irrigation District in California, which holds the largest right over Colorado's water, has been criticized by environmental advocacy groups who feared federal laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act are not respected.
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