ShareTrails | Lake Powell Update and the Desalination Research Advancement Act, H.R. 7612

Many new and exciting things are happening as we continue to be involved with Lake Powell and the Colorado Basin. Recently, the Flaming Gorge Operations Plan for the next year has been officially released and you can read that plan here. Below is the graph for the expected release plan for the next year.

With recent releases we have seen an increase in the water elevation at Lake Powell. The water now is high enough for the extended Bullfrog ramp.

Representative Mace from South Carolina and Representative Levin from California have co-sponsored the Desalination Research Advancement Act (H.R. 7612). This bill already has support from both coasts and both parties. H.R. 7612 would provide additional funding for the Bureau of Reclamation to award for desalination research and efforts. Currently the Desalination and Water Purification Research (DWPR) Program can award $5 million annually in grant funding. This proposed legislation would increase that funding to $20 million annually. The bill would also “Add research on efforts to decrease the impact of seawater desalination on coastal ecosystems to the existing list of eligible research activities under the DWPR Program.” You can read the actual text of the bill, Desalination Research Advancement Act. Congresswoman Mace has said the following regarding the DWPR Program,

“The Bureau of Reclamation’s Desalination and Water Purification Research (DWPR) Program provides funding for desalination efforts that reduce environmental impacts, lower energy consumption, and develop more advanced desalination technologies. The DWPR Program funds projects to improve water supply development from a number of water sources, including seawater, brackish groundwater, and wastewater.

Continued and increased research into desalination efforts is one way we can start to address complex water policy in the West. As users become less dependent on water from Lake Powell we could create more consistent water levels for reservoirs in the Colorado Basin. As BlueRibbon has actively worked to look at possible solutions to such a complex problem we are happy to see different stake holders come together to find a possible solution to water problems we are facing. We believe supporting this bill is one step closer as we work to Fill Lake Powell. Please use the tool below to contact your members of Congress to urge them to support the Desalination Research Advancement Act.