being explored through the System Conservation Agreement and the Colorado Water Bank Working Group.” he said.


Lochhead believes the potential for crisis should move people toward working together to achieve a mutually beficuial, common goal. “We know the system will recover, it’s a question of when,” he said. “We need to band together and get through this and have plans in place to get through it and when the system recovers, everybody goes back to their normal water use.” After a 2014 that ended with “very


average snow and runoff,” there is “reason for optimism” for 2015, said Hasencamp, who alluded to the “very wet” July through September experi- enced in parts of the basin. “Te system is primed; the ground-


water is wet,” he said. “Te snow will fall on wet soil so we will have a much more productive runoff next year because of this wet summer. It means an average snowpack might produce an above- average runoff.” Hasencamp said the hope is that


Lower Basin proposals will be funded at the beginning of 2015 and Upper Basin proposals in time for April through May growing season. Whether further assistance from the federal government is forthcoming remains to be seen, Lochhead said. “We will need a lot more than $11 million, there is no doubt about that,” he said. “Te alternative is to do [demand man- agement] through regulation and states certainly have that authority. Reclama- tion has that authority in the Lower Basin, but I don’t think that’s a preferred alternative,” he said. Farther out, the program epitomizes the cooperation that will be needed to navigate through future crises. “If we are facing an emergency [and]


we continue to be pointing fingers at each other while a slow moving train is coming our way we have only have ourselves to blame,” Lochhead said. “Tere needs to be some leadership and some people rolling up their sleeves and


January


14 Water: Te Center of Debate, sponsored by Water Resources Research Center, Tempe, AZ, https://wrrc.arizona.edu/node/13145


15-16 Tribal Water in the Southwest, sponsored by Law Seminars International, Scottsdale, AZ http://www.lawseminars.com/detail. php?SeminarCode=15TRIBWAZ


28-30 CWC 2015Annual Convention, sponsored by Colorado Water Congress, Denver, CO, http://www.cowatercongress.org/cwc_events/Annual_ Convention.aspx


February


10-12 Tamarisk Coalition’s 12th Annual Conference, Albuquerque, NM, http://www.tamariskcoalition.org/about-us/events/2015-conference


19-20 Annual Salinity Conference, Multi-State Salinity Coalition (MSCC), Las Vegas, NV, http://multi-statesalinitycoalition.com/events


19-20 2015 Land & Water Summit, sponsored by Xeriscape Council of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, http://xeriscapenm.com


19-20 Western Water Law, sponsored by CLE International, San Diego, CA http://www.cle.com/product.php?proid=1502&src=Featured&page= Western_Water_Law


27 Colorado Water Law, sponsored by CLE International, Denver, CO http://www.cle.com/product.php?proid=1505&src=Featured&page= Colorado_Water_Law


March


11-13 Water Education Foundation’s Lower Colorado River Tour, Las Vegas, NV, http://www.watereducation.org/tour/lower-colorado-river-tour-2015


25 Water Education Foundation’s Annual Executive Briefing, Sacramento, CA, http://www.watereducation.org/foundation-event/2015-executive-briefing


June


4-5 33rd Annual Water Law Conference, American Bar Association, Denver, CO http://shop.americanbar.org/ebus/ABAEventsCalendar/EventDetails. aspx?productId=134956288


Contact Sue McClurg with your calendar items from July 2015through December 2015 for inclusion in the Summer issue of River Report, smcclurg@watereducation.org 1401 21st Street, Sacramento, CA 95811


sitting down getting to work to figure how we are going to manage through a potential crisis. We’ve just got to figure out a way to manage our way through this as a system. Frankly, if things continue downhill, we don’t have a lot of time.” Tere is the larger issue of reacting in


a coordinated and practical fashion that ensures an equitable outcome.


“Te Secretary of Interior has said she


won’t stand by and let a major economy be disrupted by essentially a crisis,” Lochhead said. “In the Upper Basin our ability to meet our Compact obligations is threatened. We face a significant hydro power disruption so we have our own responsibility to maintain levels at Lake Powell.” •


Winter 2014-2015 • River Report • Colorado River Project • 9


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