Click the link to read the article on the 8NewsNow website (Greg Haas). Here’s an excerpt:
Water forecasts for the Colorado River are grim going into 2026 as several bad trends are converging. The Colorado Basin River Forecast Center (CBRFC) cited snowpack levels that are lagging badly, dry ground conditions that will soak up moisture that falls, and snow cover statistics that are the lowest on record since satellite monitoring started in 2001. CBRFC water scientist Cody Moser said conditions are “extremely poor” right now. He spoke during a webinar on Thursday morning. The two biggest factors in the CBRFC’s forecasts are snowpack levels and soil conditions. Storms that soaked California in November and December didn’t continue on to the Colorado Rockies, and that meant a slow start on building the foundation for a good snowpack to feed the river before it flows to Lake Powell and down the Grand Canyon to Lake Mead…Water flowing into Lake Powell this year is expected to be 57% of normal levels, and those “normal” levels are based on 30-year averages that include a 25-year megadrought.
Right: CBRFC hydrologic model SWE condition summary.