(2026-02-21) Why The Western Us Is Running Out Of Water In One Chart

Why the western US is running out of water, in one chart. More than one in 10 Americans rely on the Colorado River to take showers and drink clean water. But with no end in sight to the decades-long drought in the western US and rapidly decreasing river levels, this essential resource is fueling bitter disputes over who, exactly, should be cutting back on water.

This fight has been coming to a head especially among the seven states that make up the Colorado River Compact — California, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming — as well as a sliver of Mexico and over 20 tribal nations that rely on the 1.9 trillion gallons of water pulled from the Colorado River for use each year.

Record low snowfall in the West this winter has further strained the situation

The Colorado River Compact states failed to reach a Valentine’s Day deadline for a deal on how water would be apportioned for the next two decades, with the current rules set to expire this fall.

the federal government could step in and unilaterally decide for them.

Last year, the US Department of the Interior published a proposal with five potential options for the river’s future. Most involve a mix of voluntary and mandated water usage cuts, while another — fairly dire — option is “no action” at all.

the biggest user of water, by far — especially among the Colorado River states — is agriculture.
Farming accounts for about 75 percent of annual Colorado River water usage

almost half of it — by far the lion’s share — is used to grow just alfalfa and other types of hay, virtually all of which is used to feed beef and dairy cattle.

All told, animal feed accounts for at least 47 percent of all water pulled from the Colorado River

And these crops provide little economic activity to the region. For example, almost 70 percent of all of Utah’s water is used to grow alfalfa, though it represents just 0.2 percent of the state’s GDP.

in the American West, water rights are set by what’s called the “prior appropriation” doctrine — whoever uses the water first lays claim to those rights and holds them indefinitely so long as they use the water.