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“Use it or lose it” clauses give farmers, ranchers and governments holding water rights a powerful incentive to use more water than they need.
Browse Colorado River Compact news, research and analysis from The Conversation
The nation's biggest rivers are the lifeblood of the regions they flow through, but some are in trouble.
The Colorado River drainage basin is made up of seven states and spreads for about 246,000 square miles.
"Reservoirs are like bank accounts. They go up when deposits exceed withdrawals, and they drop when they don't," water policy expert Douglas Kenney said.