A new study coming from researchers at CU Boulder, reveals that precipitation, not temperature, will keep the Colorado River fuller than previous research told us.
The Journal of Climate published the study Tuesday as a guide for policymakers, water managers, states and tribes to figure out how to monitor the river until 2050.
New guidelines are going to replace regulations from 2007, which are set to expire at the end of 2026.
Comprehensive climate model analysis from CIRES, an institute of the University of Colorado Boulder, forecasting precipitation for the next 25 years, shows a 70% chance of increased precipitation compared with the last two decades, which brought the Colorado River to a devastating drought.
Colorado River headwaters originate as snow in Colorado and Wyoming mountains above 10,000 feet and supplies water to 40 million people in seven states and parts of Mexico.
Scientists have regarded 15 million acre feet of water as a key figure in measuring Colorado River flows.
They've garnered that the river has had extreme wet and dry periods throughout the last century starting in 1895. »
