The following are visual graphics to aid our understanding of managing the Colorado River Basin.

_____________________________________________________

• Aerial photo of Lake Mead @ Hoover Dam at low reservoir level in 2018. Reclamation.
• Aerial photo of Lake Mead @ Hoover Dam in 2015 when the reservoir elevation was about 1075 feet. Reclamation.
• For photos, see our gallery
• USGS photo library

_____________________________________________________

• How Bad is it? A look at the conditions of Lakes Mead and Powell as of January 1, 2019
• Reclamation's Five-year Projection of Reservoir Conditions
• Drought Contingency Planning: Trigger elevations at Lake Mead and corresponding water shortage amounts
• Congressional Research Service: Drought Contingency Planning (May, 2019)
  • Figure 1: Areas That Import Colorado River Water
  • Fiqure 1.10: Tribal Water Rights and Diversions
  • Fiqure 2: Colorado River Basin Allocations
  • Fiqure 3: Lake Powell Mead Storage Inflows
  • Fiqure 4: Lower Basin States ICS balance 2010 to 2017
  • Table 2: Basin Water Curtailment Volumes By Agreement
  • Management of Colorado River: Water Allocations, Drought and Federal Role. CRS Document.

• Colorado River Basin Reservoir Streamflow and Temperature thru Water Year 2019. Udall.
• 20-Year rolling Average at Lake Powell thru Water Year 2019. Udall.

Past Climate (Cenozoic Era)

• Past Climates Inform Our Future Graphic & Article
• Cenozoic Global Reference Benthic Foraminifer Carbon and Oxygen Isotope Dataset & Article

_____________________________________________________

Transbasin Diversions

• Transbasin Diversion Assessment 1994 to 2015

Consumptive Uses

• Supply & Demand Comparison of Colorado River Basin. 1923 to 2016.
• Upper Basin consumptive use percentages
• Upper Basin percentages adjusted for 20% reduction in supply

Leakage below Glen Canyon Dam

• Tally: leakage/seepage; around/through; Glen Canyon Dam. John Weisheit, 2023.

Streamflow

• Reservoir capacity from 1980 to 2018 (graph); (spreadsheet)
• Decline of the 30-year Mean of Unregulated Flows into Lake Powell
• Unregulated FLow Into Lake Powell (2000 to 2016)
• Annual yield summary of Colorado River
• Lake Powell Inflow and Glen Canyon Dam Outflow, 2000 to 2016
• Lake Powell Inflow 1964 to 2009
• Natural flow in various watersheds of the Colorado River Basin in MAF.
• Comparing "Critical Periods:" 1953 - 1964 & 2000 - 2013
• Natural flow @ strategic USGS gages
• 100-year trend of Colorado River annual flow
• Instrument data (1906-2008) of natural flow @ Lee's Ferry
• Natural flow last 50 years
• Tree-ring record by century & in million acre-feet from David Meko (data): 8th (partial); 9th; 10th; 11th; 12th (MegaDrought); 13th; 14th; 15th; 16th; 17th; 18th; 19th; 20th;

Flooding

• Converting cfs to acre-feet by hour, day, week and month
• Estimated Year and Maximum Flow at Moab Paleoflood Research Site
• Flood peaks for 100-yr, 500-yr, 1000-yr & probable maximum in CFS
• Historic and Paleo Flood Peaks by Century
• Magnitude of paleofloods (Paleoflood reserach & documents)
• Photo of slackwater deposits with legend. Moab site.
• Photo of slackwater deposits with legend of flow in cubic meters per second. Moab site.
• Graphics of slackwater deposits; 3 pages: OSL dates, cross-sections and river profile. Moab site.
• Timescale of Atmospheric River Events in Central Valley, CA
• Graphic designer's conceptual image of 1 million cubic feet per second flowing over the crest of Hoover Dam after Glen Canyon Dam failure.

Sediment

• Annual sediment inventory of Colorado River
• Colorado River sediment fill at Hite Marina, Lake Powell
• Lake Powell delta: river mobilization of sediment amounts 2002-2004

Evaporation

• Colorado River Basin Evaporation. 1971 to 2007 averaged.

Glen Canyon Dam Operations

• Annual Average Release From Glen Canyon Dam
• Grand Canyon beach erosion from Glen Canyon Dam operations
• Flow regime in Grand Canyon 1964-1965 (sediment scour event)
• Leakage At Glen Canyon Dam

Lake Powell Elevations

• Glen Canyon Dam @ dead pool
• Glen Canyon Dam @ minimum power pool
• Lake Powell Reservoir Contents By Percentage

Hoover Dam Operations

• Historic flow at Hoover Dam Site 1906 to 2013
• Comparing Reclamation modeling for Lake Mead with actuals

Lake Mead Elevations

• Strategic reservoir elevations @ Hoover Dam intake towers
• Lake Mead sediment storage according to pool

Colorado River Augmentation

• World desalination capacity compared to Colorado River flow

Hydropower

• Glen Canyon Dam powerplant capacity and output by reservoir elevation. Argonne.
• Annual hydropower production of Colorado River
• Electricity use per capita, per state

Other

• Beetle stress on tamarisk along river corridor near Moab, Utah
• Rivers, dams, reservoirs & hydropower
• Free-flowing river miles between dams
• Evaporation Lakes Powell & Mead by second, minute, day and year.

Photos

• Photo below Glen Canyon Dam. Credit John Weisheit.
• Photo Hoover Dam & Lake Mead at elev. 1100. Credit John Weisheit.
• Photo Hoover Dam & Lake Mead at elev. 1073. Credit John Weisheit.

_____________________________________________________

ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES OR CAP

• Shortage sharing in percent for lower basin
• Arizona & Nevads shortage budget
• CAP Delivery Priorities
• Projected Lake Mead Elevation by 2019 at 8.23 Release. CAP.
• Lake Mead Budget. CAP.
• Arizona's Annual Water Budget

_____________________________________________________

BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
Temperature and Precipitation

• The most useful graphic from the Final EIS of 2007 Interim Guidelines. Lake Mead scenarios that challenge water delivery and hydropower operations; Colorado River System Simulation (CRSS); baseline data is the hydrologic record of the 20th century; three traces juxtaposed with the 10th, 50th and 90th percentiles, under No Action Alternative (business-as-usual) and to Year 2060. And here is the Lake Powell graphic which indicates scenarios of serious flood control challenges and hydropower curtailments.
• CR basin temperatures 1895 - 2006
• UB Precipitation 1895 - 2006
• Temperature departures from 1895 - 2000 average
• Inflow of Lake Powell: breakdown by tributary
• Lake Powell Volume to Elevation Comparison
• Reservoir physical and biochemical processes

Water Yield of Colorado River

• Lower Basin Inflows from Glen Canyon to Hoover Dams
• Best available data as of 1922 Compact. Leopold and Prairie.
• Natural flow @ Lee's Ferry 1896 to 1956. Leopold.
• Instrument data (1906-2008) of natural flow @ Lee's Ferry. Prairie.
• Natural flow @ Lee's Ferry 1906 to 2010
• Basin hydrology
• Upper Basin Depletion Schedule of 2007
• Upper Basin Depletion Schedule Revised in 2016 and 2017 Resolution. UCRC.
• Lake Powell inflow since 2000
• Eleven-year inflow into Lake Powell
• Thirteen-year inflow into Lake Powell

Flood Control

• Minimum Required Colorado River System Storage Space
• Minimum Flood Control Releases at Hoover Dam
• Notable Floods above Hoover Dam
• Contents of major dams (including dead pool capacity) above Hoover

Green River and Yampa River

• Yampa River Historic Flow from 1922 to 2020
• Flaming Gorge Reservoir Historic Unregulated Inflow from 1963 to 2020

Lake Powell or Glen Canyon Dam

• 54-year record of April to July unregulated flows into Lake Powell (the mean is 7.16 maf)
• "Trace 96" - Modeling persistent drought to 2020
• Trace 1, Trace 21 & Trace 48. Shortage Criteria FEIS.
• GCD Steady Flows of Sept/Oct from 2000-2011
• GCD Annual Releases 1963 to 2011
• GCD Monthly and Annual Release Volumes 1970 to 1981
• Glen Canyon Dam important elevations
• Lake Powell operational tiers (2007 ROD)
• Lake Powell tier elevations in feet above sea level
• Lake Powell equalization tiers through 2026
• Lake Powell tiers in detail
• Important Elevations @ Glen Canyon Dam
• Schematic of penstock section @ Glen Canyon Dam
• Schematic of river outlets @ Glen Canyon Dam
• Schematic of spillway tunnel @ Glen Canyon Dam
• Schematic of the powerplant @ Glen Canyon Dam
• 1982 - Range of powerplant efficiency with reservoir elevation
• 1982 - Probabliities of Lake Powell Elevations (to 2040)
• 1983 - Photo of "river left" spillway damage
• Photo of GC Dam penstock intakes
• Photo 01 of Penstocks & River Outlets before reservoir filling
• Photo 02 of Penstocks & River Outlets before reservoir filling

Lake Mead or Hoover Dam

• Tributary inflow Lake Mead (below Glen Canyon Dam)
• Hoover Dam important elevations
• Lake Mead surplus trigger elevations
• Lake Mead tier elevations in feet above sea level
• Longitudinal profile of sediment storage
• Shortage/surplus tiers @ Lake Mead
• Lake Mead elevation archive 1935-2010
• Water budget at Lake Mead
• Photo of Hoover Dam intakes

Lakes Powell and Mead

• State of Colorado River system 1999 - 2008
• State of Storage 1999-2009
• Lake Mead & Powell operations: trigger elevations
• April 2010 - State of the system

Basin State Allocations & Consumption

• Acre-foot description
• Hydrological assumptions of 1922 Compact. CRWCD.
• Apportionments for USA and Mexico. SNWA.
• Pie Chart of seven state allocations
• Upper Basin Depletion schedule
• Upper Basin Depletion Schedule Revised in 2016 and 2017 Resolution. UCRC.
• 1906 to 2005 - Consumptive Use of Colorado River Basin
• Colorado River Basin historical supply and use
• Apportions according to various flow scenarios
• Colorado River flow at Gulf of California
• Upper Basin consumptive use. CADWES.

Basin Supply & Demand Study

• Historical Supply and Demand to 2005
• Supply & Demand Projection to 2060
• Historic consumption by basin
• Historic consumption by category
• Consumption for both basins and Mexico, 1906 to 2005 (no evaporation)

Lower Basin

• Map: dams and diversions

Project Inventory

• Contents of major dams (including dead pool capacity) above Hoover
• Statement of Commissioner Connor

Western Region Projects and Power Transmission Lines

• 1977 - Map: Reclamation Power Facilities
• 1977 - Map: River Basins and Reservoirs

_____________________________________________________

CALIFORNIA'S COLORADO RIVER BOARD

• Monthly total Colorado River basin storage

METROPOLITAN WATER DISTRICT of Southern California

• MWD reservoir storage
• MWD's 2014 Estimate of Colorado River Diversions

_____________________________________________________

COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES (archive)

• Colorado State Total Depletions. CRWCD (2019).
• Colorado's Transbasin Diversions
• Colorado River annual yield at Lee's Ferry
• Lake Powell inflow & release
• Powell storage
• Salinity chart
• Lake Mead storage
• Hoover flows
• Estimated virgin flow at Lee's Ferry 1896 to 2004
• Tree ring inflow at Lee's Ferry
• Map of trans-mountain diversions and amounts
• Map of tran-basin diversions and amounts

_____________________________________________________

DROUGHT & PERSISTENT DRYING

• Persistent drying between 1928 and 1982. Pulwarty and Melis.
• 1950 to 2018 Temperature and Precipitation Upper Colorado River. Udall.
• 1935 & 1956 PDSI. Woodhouse and Overpeck.
• 10-year periods od wide-spread drought in USA. Woodhouse.
• PDO and AMO influences on drought frequency. USGS.
• 20th century river flow with drought periods highlighted. USGS.
• Global indicators of warming. Western Water Assessment.
• Colorado temperature projections. Western Water Assessment.
• Palmer Drought Severity Index for year 2006 to 2060. Western Water Assessment.
• Temperature departures from 1895 - 2000 average. Reclamation
• UB Precipitation 1895 - 2006. Reclamation.
• Drought in California: 2000 to 2014

_____________________________________________________

ENSO

• Oceanic Nino Index 1950 - 2015
• AMO and PDO since 1895; also here.
• 1950 to 2018 - Cold and Warm Episodes

_____________________________________________________

MAPS

• Map: Boundary that defines the Upper and Lower Divisions. Reclamation.
• Map: Colorado River Service Areas (high resolution). Reclamation.
• Map of Colorado River Indian Tribes. Pontius.
• Colorado River basin map. Pacific Institute.
• Colorado River basin map. Wikipedia.
• Colorado River basin map . Colorado Dept. Natural Resources.
• Map: dams and diversions . Reclamation.
• Geophysical provinces of the Colorado Plateau. USGS.
• Southern California aqueduct system
• Water service districts of California
• Colorado River Map 01. National Geographic.
• Colorado River Map 02. National Geographic.
• The Plumbing System. High Country News.
• San Juan River Basin.
• San Juan River Diversions
• Upper Colorado River Basin.
• Upper Basin satellite image
• Watershed boundaries in the arid lands. Powell Survey.
• 1928 - Colorado River Proposed Projects
• Colorado River basin. USGS.
• Map: dams and diversions lower basin
• Map of transmountain diversions
• Upper Green River (12 dams)
• Upper Colorado River (Yampa & White) (17 dams)
• Gunnison & Dolores rivers (11 dams)
• San Juan River (5 dams)
• Central Utah (11 dams)
• Central Utah Project
• Nevada, SW Utah and NW Arizona
• Salt River Project Service Area

_____________________________________________________

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICES

• Snowpack GIS
• Snowpack of western region
• Snowpack of Colorado River Basin
• FTP site

_____________________________________________________

SOUTHERN NEVADA WATER AUTHORITY

• Ten year average flow 2000 - 2009 (Reclamation graphic)
• Fact sheet of basin

_____________________________________________________

US GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

• Colorado River basin fact sheet
• Lake Mead dead pool sediment thickness (cache)
• Colorado River flow trend @ Lee's Ferry
• Lake Powell stratification profile and temperature
• Lake Powell dissolved oxygen concentrations
• 1997 to 2008 power generation@ Glen Canyon Dam
• Water per capita use in the Intermountain West
• AMO and PDO since 1895; also here.

_____________________________________________________

OTHER

Dams

• List of dams in Colorado River Basin. Wikipedia.
• Schematic of Hoover dam showing water capacity by percent. Rogers.

Delta

• Delta historic flows from 1910 to 2000
• Colorado River Flow at Mouth

Drought

• 21 centuries of drought in New Mexico. (graphic). New York Times.

Storage

• 1500 - 2005 North American Drought Atlas. Cook et al.
• Storage of Lakes Powell & Mead & combined
• Lake Mead storaqe

Flow

• Lee's Ferry gage (annual water yield)
• Colorado Basin net flow balance. CADWES.

Consumptive use

• Lower Basin Present Perfected Rights (senior water rights)
• Upper Basin Present Perfected Rights. Kuhn, 2012.
• Historic Consumptive Use and Supply (1922-2002). Lochhead, 2003.
• Upper Basin consumptive use. CADWES.
• Projected Upper Basin consumption. Doug Kenney.
• 2012 - Consumptive use in both basins. Kuhn.

Energy

• Pie chart of energy production USA
• Electric generating stations. WECC.
• Hydropower net generation at Hoover and Glen Canyon dams 2015 to 2019. S & P.

Run-off

• Percent runoff Upper Colorado sub-basins. Western Water Assessment.
• Percent runoff Upper Colorado by elevation. WWA.

Temperature

• Temperatures at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. ASU.

Sediment

• Cross section of sediment accumulation at San Juan Arm (Lake Powell). Stevenson.

Uranium

• Western Colorado uranium mill sites. Denver Post.
• Uranium production worldwide in 2009
• Uranium claims in Grand Canyon watershed