Three states are being told they'll have to cut back on the amount of water they pull from the Colorado River by approximately 20 percent over the next two years, according to a new environmental impact statement published by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
The Colorado River provides water to seven states, 30 Native tribes, two of the nation’s largest reservoirs, and some parts of northwestern Mexico, but the river basin has been in a drought since 2000, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.