Expert: Colorado River Crisis Exacerbated by Climate Change

02/01/2023

Media contacts: Emily Gowdey-Backus, director of media relations Emily_GowdeyBackus@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, assistant director of media relations, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu

The ongoing megadrought and Colorado River water crisis in the Western U.S. are driven in large part by climate change, according to a UMass Lowell expert available for interviews. 

“Warm air temperatures, which are directly attributable to human emissions of greenhouse gases, have drawn water out of soils, lakes, and rivers through evaporation and placed increased demand on water resources,” said UMass Lowell’s Christopher Skinner, a member of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Drought Task Force, which works to advance understanding and predictability of droughts in the U.S. 

For years, federal officials have considered options to safeguard water levels in reservoirs along the 1,450-mile-long river, which supplies cities and farmlands from Wyoming southwest to the California border with Mexico.

Tuesday, officials from the seven states dependent on the Colorado River – Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming – failed to meet the deadline set by the federal government to submit a water-use reduction plan as the drought drags on. While six of the states have submitted a proposal, California – which uses the most water from the river – is the lone holdout.

But time is of the essence, according to Skinner.

“Even during years of normal precipitation, the West is at risk for drought because of the increased evaporative demand of the warmer atmosphere,” said Skinner. “Unfortunately, these warm temperatures are the new normal, and water policies in the West will need to change with the changing climate to ensure water, food, and energy security.” 

Skinner is available to discuss: 

• The role of climate change in driving the ongoing Western U.S. drought 
• Atmospheric rivers and their role in ending drought
• Future projections of climate throughout the Western U.S. 

Skinner is an assistant professor of climate science in UMass Lowell’s department of environmental, Earth, and atmospheric sciences and a member of the university’s Climate Change Initiative. He studies climate extremes, including heavy precipitation, drought and heat waves.