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Series: Colorado Water Law Basics #14.2 - Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan
The 1922 Colorado River Compact split the river’s resources into two segments, the Upper Basin States & the Lower Basin States. The 1922 Compact allocated the “exclusive beneficial consumptive use of 7,500,000 acre-feet of water per annum” to each Division. However, the 1922 Compact did not establish apportionments of water within each Division. That apportionment was done at a later date. Unfortunately, the apportionments to the Upper and Lower Basin States, 15 million acre-feet (MAF) annually, are more than the Colorado River yields. How are the shortages dealt with equitably? Read on to find out!