Capacity of Lake Powell is shrinking due to sediments

Sedimentation is a known problem for artificial lakes. Sediments are mostly composed of sand with the remainder being a mix of clay and silt. Most of the clay and silt has been transported to the deepest parts of the lake by the dense, sediment-laden currents flowing into Lake Powell.

Lake Powell, located in the Colorado River Basin is the second-largest reservoir in the US. Both Lake Powell and nearby Lake Mead, the nation's largest reservoir, have drained at an alarming rate.

In August 2021, the government declared a water shortage on the Colorado River for the first time after Lake Mead's water level plunged to unprecedented lows, triggering mandatory water consumption cuts for states in the Southwest that began in January.

And in May 2022, Lake Powell dipped below the critical threshold, sparking additional concerns about water supply and hydropower generation millions of people in the Western US rely on for electricity.

Lake Powell has lost nearly 7% of its potential storage capacity since 1963, when Glen Canyon Dam was built, a new report shows. It seems that Lake Powell suffered an average annual loss in storage capacity of about 6.8 percent (from 1963 to 2018) and 4.0 percent (from 1986 to 2018).

So, not only is less and less water flowing into Lake Powell, but its total capacity is dwindling too as a result of sediments. It's like smoking a cigar with both ends alight.

The system supplies water for more than 40 million people living across seven Western states and Mexico. Lake Powell and Lake Mead provide a critical supply of drinking water and irrigation for many across the region, including rural farms, ranches and native communities. This region is already devastated by continuing droughts.

[Drought in the southwestern US]

In the end, there will be too little water in both Lake Powell and Lake Mead to service the entire southwestern US with its ever growing demand for water. Maybe people shouldn't live in a desert.