Turbines in Arizona's Lake Powell provide power to close to 6 million people in the West. If the lake's water level drops another 40 feet, its turbines will stop spinning.
The Colorado River after it passes through the Glen Canyon Dam. The water will travel through the Grand Canyon and into Lake Mead.
Decades of drought have drained the country’s two largest reservoirs — Lake Powell in Arizona and Lake Mead in Nevada — to record lows, both only around one-quarter full currently. And with 40 million Southwest U.S. residents depending on the Colorado River for water, the Interior Department has released plans to ensure water and power still reach those who need it.
Hydropower — the use of water to create renewable, clean energy — has taken a huge hit. Lake Powell’s water operates turbines below the waterline that generate electricity with no harmful emissions. But the lake is closer than it has ever been to a water level called “minimum power pool.” The lake would have to drop approximately 40 more feet to reach that level, but if it does, the turbines won’t be able to spin at all, eliminating all energy once harvested from them.
Turbines in Lake Powell provide power to close to 6 million people in the West, including nearly half the electricity used by the Navajo Tribe. With water levels continuing to drop, tribal leaders are preparing for a future with less hydropower, knowing they’ll have to turn to more expensive, less clean forms of electricity. Srinivasa Venigalla, deputy general manager of the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, knows most of his customers cannot afford that.
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