States propose compromise guidelines for Colorado River water use

DENVER - A conflict among the seven Western states that share water from the Colorado River came closer to resolution this week as the states proposed new guidelines for water use.

A delegation from the states met with Interior Department officials to discuss a compromise agreement designed to provide a ''soft landing'' for California as it reduces its use of the water over the next 15 years.

The Interior Department said it is considering proposed interim guidelines for use of Colorado River water and expects to make a final decision by the end of the year.

In a news release, Deputy Interior Secretary David Hayes called Thursday's meeting in Washington a ''positive, constructive interchange with the states regarding a potential approach for addressing interim guidelines.''

He said the department is working with the states and other interested parties on a plan gradually reduce California's annual consumption 4.4 million acre-feet of water from the river.

California for years has exceeded that annual allotment - set in a 1922 compact - by about 800,000 acre-feet. An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons, or enough to supply a family of four for a year.

As Arizona and Nevada have grown closer to using their entire allotments, California's overuse has become a more critical issue. And with years of above-average water levels expected to soon give way to years of drought, the conflict could intensify without an agreement.

''All of the states recognize that a collision could occur soon if this issue isn't addressed,'' Hayes said Wednesday, before the meeting.

Talks have gone on for months among the three states, as well as Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. The Colorado or its tributaries flow through the seven states involved.

Officials from Colorado and other states were not available for comment Friday, but a spokesman for the Arizona Department of Water Resources, Jack Lavelle, has said the proposed guidelines will allow California to ''wean itself'' from the excess use.