SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:
Today, the federal government released a new plan for sharing water from the Colorado River. That river provides water for more than 40 million people in seven U.S. states and dozens of tribal communities, but it's facing dire drought conditions and continued heavy demand. The plan from the Interior Department comes after years of deadlock negotiations, and it calls for potentially huge cuts in water use in California, Arizona and Nevada. Joining us now with details a reporter Alex Hager. He covers water issues at member station KJZZ in Phoenix. Hi, Alex.
ALEX HAGER, BYLINE: Hi. Thanks for having me.
PFEIFFER: So thousands, maybe tens of thousands of farms and communities across the West could be affected by this federal plan. Tell us more about it.
HAGER: Yeah, this plan sets up a 10-year framework with a very wide range for how much water could be cut. The plan is a response to more than two decades of climate change and drought which have shrunk the nation's largest reservoirs. Maybe most interesting is that it forces policymakers to come back to the table every two years and tweak the plan in response to river conditions.
The Interior Department is expected to announce the exact size of cuts for the next two years in the coming days or weeks. The plan gives the federal government the ability to cut water by up to 40% for Arizona, California and Nevada. That's a lot of water. For now, the plan does not put mandatory cutbacks on Colorado, Utah, New Mexico or Wyoming.
PFEIFFER: A 40% cut would be just massive. How are farms and cities preparing for the impact of that plan?
HAGER: Yeah. The three downstream states - Arizona, California and Nevada - they came up with a plan to spread out the pain of cutbacks. And we expect the hardest hits will come for cities in the Phoenix and Tucson areas. The good news for the millions of people living there - city utilities have spent years planning for shortages just like this, so taps will not go dry.
Like any good investor, a city generally has a diverse portfolio of water. So when there is less from the Colorado River, they can lean a little harder on a different source, like groundwater or a different nearby river. These cities have backup plans, but the cuts will still be very painful and expensive.
PFEIFFER: And, Alex, I understand that Arizona, where you live, may likely be the hardest hit. Is that the case? And if so, what's the reaction in Arizona?
HAGER: Yeah, that's right. Arizona leaders say the worst cuts proposed under this plan are unacceptable and that they would devastate Arizona's economy. Arizona's U.S. senators, both Democrats - they blasted the plan today, saying it places an unfair burden on the state. But some Arizona officials don't expect that those worst cuts will become a reality, at least for the next two years. They hope the actual amount of water reductions will come from their counterproposal to the federal government that would still mean significant cutbacks but spread them out to deal a little less pain to the Phoenix area.
PFEIFFER: And as we mentioned, there are several other states that use the river that are being spared mandatory cuts, at least for now. What's next for those states?
HAGER: Yeah, that's right. So we're talking about Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico. They did not volunteer to take any mandatory cuts. So they are legally required to send a certain amount of water downstream every year, and they argue that they are already taking cuts because drought and climate change gives them less water to send.
That is a big part of this disagreement. Water managers say this new plan leaves the door open for further negotiations among the states, but tensions are still high. After years of bitter disagreement and failed talks, some states are still prepared to sue each other or the federal government if future changes threaten their water supplies.
PFEIFFER: That is reporter Alex Hager with member station KJZZ in Phoenix. Alex, thank you.
HAGER: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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