Newsweek reports that water levels are improving in Lake Mead and Lake Powell after the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) issued a low storage warning earlier. The conditions are cause for celebration for boaters and campers alike. The two lake regions offer prolific outdoor rec opportunities.
The latest report is also good news to RV and boat storage operators, who offer a home to travelers’ RVs, boats and other large rec vehicles when their owners return from adventurous getaways and return to the grind.
After years of drought, Lake Mead, which is shared by Nevada and Arizona, reached severely low levels last summer, but water levels began to recover after above-average precipitation and snowpack last winter that continues to melt and raise the lakes.
Recent data show Lake Mead has raised nearly 20 feet since April’s low. Similarly, Lake Powell, which calls both Utah and Arizona home, has recovered more than 30 feet since April’s low levels. The lake’s water levels have started a slow decline since July but it remains in a much better situation compared with last year. The photo below shows April’s levels of where the Colorado levels meet Lake Mead.
“The above-average precipitation this year was a welcome relief, and coupled with our hard work for system conservation, we have the time to focus on the long-term sustainability solutions needed in the Colorado River Basin,” Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton said in a statement. “However, Lake Powell and Lake Mead—the two largest reservoirs in the United States and the two largest storage units in the Colorado River system—remain at historically low levels.”
Touton continued: “As we experience a warmer, drier west due to a prolonged drought, accelerated by climate change, Reclamation is committed to leading inclusive and transparent efforts to develop the next-generation framework for managing the river system.”
