The Problem: The Colorado River Basin has been suffering through a climate change driven mega-drought and aridification since 2000. The native flow of the river has declined by as much as 31% from its 20 th century average. Lakes Powell and Mead have been drawn down to alarming low levels. At the same time continued withdrawals and diversions have been slow to adjust. The 2007 Interim Guidelines and subsequent agreements have proved inadequate in the face of this deepening crisis. The water
rights of Native Tribes and Environmental needs have been largely ignored. The flow of the river is no longer sufficient to satisfy all the demands on the river. Operations guidelines after 2026 are currently being negotiated, yet many of the stakeholders are
still stuck in self interest and 19 th century thinking.

The Solution: We need to see the Colorado River Basin as a whole, as a single integrated system encompassing all the demands on the shrinking river, including Tribal, Environmental and Recreational needs. We need to shift the paradigm of past management on the river to accommodate the reality of climate change driven aridification and reduced flows. We need flexibility, learning to live within the native flow of this diminished river system.

Our Vision: We envision a healthy Colorado River basin and watershed, including all tributaries, that can sustainably provide for the needs of the Environment, agriculture, cities and local economies throughout the basin.

Our Mission: We act as resource for action and education to support Sierra Club goals within the Colorado River Basin. We support and develop strategies and new thinking for management of the Colorado River. Water is sacred, needed by all life, and we guard against the monetizing of the waters of the Colorado River. Water is not a commodity to be seen as “private property”, used and disposed of carelessly or for profit. It belongs to all of us, including all the non-human beings and the natural environment that depend on it.

We share information among the basin states on each state's water resource management plans. We stay actively informed about conditions and developments at state and regional levels. We engage water activists through webinars, a book club, our webpage, and a discussion listserv. We also communicate with Sierra Club national staff on relevant federal water issues.

Learn More About the Colorado River

To ask a question, please email Cary Meister.