Nevada sued the Trump administration Monday to prevent its Colorado River water plan from moving forward. Officials say the cuts could ravage the state and end long-observed river rules.
The Interior Department on Friday completed the plan, which orders a 21 percent cut in water deliveries to Arizona, California, and Nevada for two years beginning in 2027. Those reductions for the lower basin states could nearly double after 2028. Arizona and Nevada have said deeper cuts would hit their economies hard.
“Under the proposed plan issued by the Department of the Interior, southern Nevada could lose more than 70 percent of its already meager Colorado River allocation while the Upper Basin states of Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Wyoming are not required to contribute a drop,” Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo said. “This isn’t about political posturing; this is a matter of survival for a community that represents about two-thirds of our state’s citizens and the lion’s share of its economy.”…