Lake Powell officials take emergency steps to protect hydropower from Glen Canyon Dam

Step one is releasing more water from upstream on the Colorado River this yr. The second is water will likely be held again in Lake Powell itself, as an alternative of being despatched to downstream states.

The US Bureau of Reclamation expects the dual actions will boost Lake Powell by practically 1 million acre-feet of water. The reservoir contained about 5.8 million acre-feet of water as of Tuesday, according to the bureau, although its full capability is round 25 million acre-feet.

With out the emergency steps, the bureau estimated there was a few 25% likelihood the Glen Canyon Dam could have stopped producing hydropower by January. The dam generates power for as many as 5.8 million houses and businesses in seven states.

The agency said in an announcement Tuesday's decision was supposed to protect "hydropower generation, the ability's key infrastructure, and the water supply for the city of Web page, Arizona, and the LeChee Chapter of the Navajo Nation."

The emergency actions will buy the federal government 12 months as it considers longer-term measures.

"We have never taken this step before, however the potential threat on the horizon calls for immediate action," Assistant Secretary of Water and Science, Tanya Trujillo informed reporters. "We need to work together to stabilize the reservoir before we face a larger crisis."

Lake Powell has dropped around 100 feet within the final three years as the West has been besieged by drought. As the water level has fallen, Glen Canyon Dam has misplaced about 16% of its capability to generate energy.

Bryan Hill, general manager of the general public power utility in Web page, Arizona, likened the situation to judgment day.

"We're knocking on the door of judgment day," Hill beforehand instructed CNN. "Judgment day being when we don't have any water to offer anybody."

The choices made for Lake Powell additionally affect its downstream neighbor, Lake Mead, which is the largest reservoir in the nation.

Water cuts for many who rely on Lake Mead began in January, and Tuesday's decision could result in further restrictions.

Lake Mead's water level is now low enough to reveal one of many reservoir's original, 1971 water consumption valves for the first time. The valve can now not draw water, in keeping with the Southern Nevada Water Authority, the agency responsible for managing water resources for 2.2 million people in southern Nevada, together with Las Vegas.

Officials over the weekend made one other disturbing discovery introduced on by Lake Mead's plummeting water degree: a physique in a barrel police say is a probable murder sufferer from the 1980s.

"The lake has drained dramatically during the last 15 years," stated Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Homicide Lieutenant Ray Spencer. "It is likely that we are going to discover further our bodies which have been dumped in Lake Mead" because the water degree drops more.