05-25-2010, 06:01 PM
**COPIED FROM LINCOLN COUNTY RECORD**
The dramatic drop in the level of Lake Mead since 2000 when it was well above average has been startling. In June 2009, the Bureau of Reclamation recorded levels at 1,095 feet above sea level, 43 percent of capacity. In 2000, the lake was 96 percent of capacity.
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography predicts there is a 50 percent probability that Lake Mead will be completely dry to 2021, because of climate change, unsustainable use of Colorado River water and unabated growth in the Southern Nevada area. The report concluded, "Today, we are at or beyond the sustainable limit of the Colorado system.
Agriculture interests in California and Arizona get 80 percent of the water from the Colorado system. Southern Nevada Water Authority, which takes 90 percent of the water they use for Southern Nevada's water supply, is also greatly concerned there will not be enough water left for their needs. SNWA uses two main intake pipes in Lake Mead to feed water to the SNWA system. However, the drastic drop has been so great, when the level of Lake Mead reaches 1,050, one of the intake pipes will be higher that the water level. At the 1,000-foot level, the other intake pipe will be above the water level.
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The dramatic drop in the level of Lake Mead since 2000 when it was well above average has been startling. In June 2009, the Bureau of Reclamation recorded levels at 1,095 feet above sea level, 43 percent of capacity. In 2000, the lake was 96 percent of capacity.
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography predicts there is a 50 percent probability that Lake Mead will be completely dry to 2021, because of climate change, unsustainable use of Colorado River water and unabated growth in the Southern Nevada area. The report concluded, "Today, we are at or beyond the sustainable limit of the Colorado system.
Agriculture interests in California and Arizona get 80 percent of the water from the Colorado system. Southern Nevada Water Authority, which takes 90 percent of the water they use for Southern Nevada's water supply, is also greatly concerned there will not be enough water left for their needs. SNWA uses two main intake pipes in Lake Mead to feed water to the SNWA system. However, the drastic drop has been so great, when the level of Lake Mead reaches 1,050, one of the intake pipes will be higher that the water level. At the 1,000-foot level, the other intake pipe will be above the water level.
[signature]