Southwest Drought Plan Hobbled by Denial of $200M for Salton Sea (1)

Drought planning efforts along the Colorado River stumbled March 1 when federal authorities declined a $200 million request to help restore California’s Salton Sea.

The Colorado River—which supplies water to California, six other states and Mexico—has been experiencing a drought for 19 years.

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials gave the states until Jan. 31 to come up with drought contingency agreements to ensure that water levels at lakes Mead and Powell don’t fall to dangerous levels.

California and Arizona didn’t meet the deadline, so federal authorities asked governors of the states to recommend how the bureau should manage the water ...