When it comes to Lake Mead’s water levels, even the biggest storms that hit Las Vegas aren’t much of a factor.
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The amount and intensity of water that fell across the Las Vegas Valley over the weekend could rank up there with some of the biggest floods in the area’s history.
The tropical storm brought nearly a monsoon season’s worth of precipitation in just a few days. But that heavy rainfall likely had little effect on Lake Mead’s water levels.
Not even Las Vegas’ hottest month on record could knock Lake Mead’s timely rise off course.
Research suggests that cloud seeding can increase snowfall by as much as 10 percent, so it’s no wonder that Nevada — the nation’s driest state — is investing in the practice.
The water authority wants to pay Southern Nevadans to plant shade trees to maintain and grow the region’s tree canopy.
A projected overdemand for groundwater will limit growth along the edges of the metro Phoenix area, but the situation in Las Vegas is different.
Average summertime temperatures in Las Vegas have increased by 5.8 degrees since 1970, ranking as the second fastest-warming city in the U.S.
If the bill were to become law, Nevada would be the first state to give a water agency the power to cap the amount of water that flows into individual homes.
After dropping more than 50 feet since 2000, latest forecasts show Lake Mead rising by roughly 22 feet by the end of the year.
The two proposals show that “the tools available to the federal government are very blunt,” said John Entsminger, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority.
Since the 1980s, Southern Nevada has been banking its unused Colorado River water, storing hundreds of billions of gallons away underground and in Lake Mead.
The Southern Nevada Water Authority is evaluating whether changes need to be made to its lowest intake straw in order to protect water quality as Lake Mead continues to shrink.
Two competing proposals to achieve federally mandated cuts to Colorado River water use are on the table, but agreement between states has remained elusive.
The mountains that feed the Colorado River already have seen more snow this winter than they normally would through an entire snow season.