April 30, 2022, at 3:58 p.m. LAS VEGAS (AP) — A massive drought-starved reservoir on the Colorado River has become so depleted that Las Vegas now is pumping water from deeper within Lake Mead where other states downstream don’t have access.
Will Las Vegas run out of water in the future?
But Las Vegas’ water won’t be affected. The water authority wisely built an intake valve into the bottom of the lake years ago. If you don’t believe my optimism, take it from John Entsminger, the SNWA’s general manager. He called Las Vegas “the most water-secure municipal area in the Colorado River Basin.”
How will Vegas get water?
There are two primary sources of water supply in Las Vegas to meet the current water needs: the Colorado River and groundwater. While the water from the Colorado River is mainly taken from Lake Mead, groundwater is pumped from the underground rivers and aquifers.
How long till Vegas runs out of water?
For Las Vegas and the state of Nevada, annual usage is reduced by 7%, which is about 6.8 billion gallon of water. The shortage will run for a year and be renewed annually depending on conditions, or it will be repealed once water levels at Lake Mead return to 1,075 feet.
Will Las Vegas lose water?
Millions in Southern California are facing new water restrictions due to a megadrought crippling the Southwest, but across the border in Nevada — they’ve been conserving water for years.
What happens if Lake Mead runs dry?
Skyrocketing costs for urban users of what little water and power is still available could cause mass migrational population shifts. Real estate values could plummet. The “dead pool” of Lake Mead could transform parts of the Southwest into “dead zones.”
How long before Lake Mead runs out of water?
The surface of Lake Mead, the country’s largest reservoir, now stands at 1,045 feet above sea level. It’s forecast to drop more than 26 feet by July 2023.
Will Lake Mead ever fill up again?
Both Lake Powell and Lake Mead reservoirs are half empty, and scientists predict that they will probably never fill again. The water supply of more than 22 million people in the three Lower Basin states is in jeopardy.
How long would it take to fill Lake Mead?
Lake Mead has a somewhat larger shortage, about 8 trillion gallons, but it could be filled in about 370 days at 250,000 gallons/sec. Within a year and eight months of the aqueduct’s finish, both reservoirs would be filled and most of the Southwest’s water problems would be gone.
Will Las Vegas become a ghost town?
If the truth were known, Las Vegas is heading toward becoming a ghost town, adding it to the 60 or so other ghost towns of Nevada. Much like Roman ruins, we will have a vast field of empty houses surrounded by huge freeway interchanges in the middle of the Mojave.
Does Vegas have a water problem?
Combined with existing water reductions outlined in the Drought Contingency Plan, the declared shortage reduces Southern Nevada’s annual water allocation by nearly 7 billion gallons (21,000 acre-feet) in 2022—enough to serve about 45,000 valley households for a year.
Where does Vegas get its electricity?
Plant Description : The Silverhawk Generating Station is a clean-burning, natural gas-fueled power plant that is located in southern Nevada, north of Las Vegas. The plant utilizes two highly efficient Siemens / Westinghouse 501FD2 combustion turbines to produce electricity.
Why is Lake Mead drying up?
Las Vegas, some 50 kilometres from Lake Mead, was a renowned hotbed of mafia activity during the 1970s and 80s. The lake’s drying out comes as a vast majority of scientists say the world is warming, mainly because of rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
Who uses the most water from Lake Mead?
California
“California, it gets the largest share. 4.4 million acre-feet of water is available to California. Arizona gets about 2.8 million acre-feet. The country of Mexico, 1.5 million and us right here in Southern Nevada we get 300,000 acre-feet,” Mack said.
How will climate change affect Las Vegas?
In fact, Climate Central says Las Vegas is the fastest-warming city, moving up almost 6 degrees on average since 1970. Heat is only part of the problem. Climate change is also impacting water resources, wildlife, and wildfire risks.
How long until the Colorado River dries up?
How Long Until the Colorado River Dries Up? Now, we must ask ourselves how long until the Colorado River dries up. According to American Rivers, the Colorado River will have a 10-30% flow reduction by 2050 due to climate change. This impacts the snowmelt that supplies most of the Colorado River with its water.
How deep is Lake Mead now?
What is the Depth and Maximum Capacity of Lake Mead? Lake Mead has a maximum depth of more than 532 feet and a maximum capacity of 28,945,000 acre-feet. Lake Mead has a maximum depth of more than 532 feet. This massive reservoir is the largest in the U.S., having a capacity of 28,945,000 acre-feet.
What’s at the bottom of Lake Mead?
One of the best-known historical item resting at the bottom of Lake Mead is a crashed B-29 Superfortress plane that has been there since 1948. Much of the information in this story comes from the National Park Service (NPS), which oversees the Lake Mead National Recreation Area and patrols the area’s land and water.
What year will Lake Mead go dry?
According to an analysis performed by Barsugli et al., Lake Mead has a 50% percent chance of going dry between 2035 and 2047 if nothing is done to stop the current draw down and evaporation rate of the lake [234].
What is the future of Lake Mead?
With the decreased release, the elevation of Lake Mead will drop this year by about 8 feet. But when the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation makes the 2023 Shortage Tier determination for Lake Mead, it will account for the water held back in Lake Powell as if it had been delivered to Lake Mead.
What is the city of Las Vegas doing to solve its water problems?
The city is also doing its part to conserve water: We reduced water consumption at our facilities by 2.25 billion gallons over the last decade. We built LEED-certified green buildings with water-efficient landscaping and low-flow fixtures.