Colorado River Water Negotiators Optimistic Ahead of Deadline

Officials involved in the talks over how to cut Colorado River water use amid a historic drought say they’re optimistic a consensus will be reached by states before a Feb. 1 deadline even though the negotiations are in a delicate place.

If the seven Western states don’t reach consensus, the Interior Department’s Bureau of Reclamation will consider mandating water cuts—a move the states are working feverishly to avoid.

More than likely, “we’re going to end up with some kind of hybrid outcome in which we have agreement in part, and some mandatory imposed outcomes from the federal government,” Tom Buschatzke, ...