One of the many reasons the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California interests me so much is the way that it integrates much of the complexities of water management in the western United States. By drawing supplies from the Sierra Nevada as well as the Colorado River Basin, it links the two largest arid-west ag-urban water management complexes. It is, for better or worse, a fulcrum.
Right now, it’s on the “better” side of the fulcrum. Met’s latest “Water Supply Conditions Report” is a remarkable thing to behold. First, the Northern Sierra Nevada:
Northern Sierra Nevada, courtesy MWD
Next, the Southern Sierra:
Southern Sierra Nevada, courtesy MWD
And the Colorado River Basin:
Colorado River Basin, courtesy MWD
You can see why Met is feeling the flexibility right now to make the contributions it’s offering to the Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan.
Yes a fulcrum that adds a nexus and the flexibility the Colorado River Basin needs; a wet year in the Sierra can be leveraged to shore up Lake Mead. It’s all connected.