U.S. Senator Ken Salazar Member of the Agriculture, Energy and Veterans Affairs Committees 2300 15^th Street, Suite 450 Denver, CO 80202 | 702 Hart Senate Building, Washington, D.C. 20510
For Immediate Release May 3, 2005		CONTACT: Cody Wertz – Press Secretary 202-228-3630 Jen Clanahan – Deputy Press Secretary 303-455-7600
SEN. SALAZAR DISAPPOINTED IN LAKE POWELL DECISION Washington, D.C. – United States Senator Ken Salazar expressed disappointment today in a letter to Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton on her decision not to adjust the quantity of water released from Lake Powell. Senator Salazar’s letter to Secretary Norton is included below. Senator Salazar cc’d Russell George, Executive Director, Colorado Department of Natural Resources and John W. Keys, III, Commissioner, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation on the letter. May 3, 2005 The Honorable Gale Norton Secretary of the Interior 1849 C Street Washington, DC 20240 Dear Secretary Norton: On May 2, you announced that you will not adjust the quantity of water released from Lake Powell below the 8.23 million acre-feet identified in the 2005 Annual Operating Plan for Colorado River System Reservoirs. Although I am disappointed by your decision, I am heartened that you have emphatically reminded all interested parties that the Department of the Interior does retain the authority to adjust releases from Lake Powell and may do so as soon as next year. As you know, water stored in Lake Powell provides critical insurance to the Upper Basin states of the Colorado River system -- Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New Mexico. Water stored in Lake Powell allows us, in the Upper Basin states, to meet our obligations under the Colorado River Compact to the Lower Basin states of California, Arizona and Nevada without curtailing our current uses of water. During the recent multiple year drought, Lake Powell has operated as a critical buffer for the Upper Basin by providing water to the Lower Basin. However, because of the drought, the water level in Lake Powell is below the level needed to assure that the Upper Basin will not have to curtail uses to comply with the Colorado River Compact. In contrast, the water level in Lake Mead is nearing surplus conditions. Even though runoff conditions in the Upper Basin are near normal this year, there is no assurance that the unprecedented drought of the last several years will not continue on a longer-term basis. These conditions dictate that, as the official charged with operating Lake Powell and other federal reservoirs, you exercise your authority to assure the Upper Basin will continue to be protected by storage in Lake Powell. I am pleased that you have directed the Bureau of Reclamation to convene a meeting of the Colorado River Management Work Group this month to address these issues. I ask that the Bureau of Reclamation keep me updated on the status of these discussions. Thank you for your attention to this very important water matter. Sincerely, Ken Salazar U.S. Senator Copies: Russell George, Executive Director, Colorado Department of Natural Resources John W. Keys, III, Commissioner, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation # # #