For anglers visiting and fishing throughout the west—particularly in Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico—the current fight over Colorado River water is something worth paying attention to.
For over a century, the water in the Colorado River has been managed by the Colorado River Compact, an agreement between Upper and Lower Basin states on how to share and manage the river that now supplies water to more than 40 million Americans. The Colorado and its tributaries are also responsible for irrigating crops and providing some of the most outstanding fly fishing anywhere in the world.
In the face of drought, rapid population growth, and increasing demands on the water, a new deal needs to be struck in order to ensure there’s enough water for all the states that depend on it. Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and California all receive water from the Colorado River, and the country’s two largest reservoirs—Lake Powell and Lake Mead—were created to help store and manage this resource.
The seven states that receive water from the Colorado are trying to reach a new agreement on how that water will be distributed. Those states recently missed a deadline for that agreement to be in place, which means the federal government could intervene and force a plan on the states if they don’t secure a deal soon.
However, all states have agreed to continue meeting until they have a “framework solution” in February 2026, according to KSL.com.
“We were able to have enough of a framework put together that the federal government agrees with us that the framework can be continued to be refined in order for us to have a deal by the middle of February,” Gene Shawcroft, chairman of the Colorado River Authority of Utah, told KSL.
Two-thirds of Utah’s population relies on the Colorado River, even as its instream flows have dwindled in recent years. Senior water rights holders like California continue to draw large amounts of water without reductions, while states like Arizona and New Mexico have already agreed to dramatically limit their water use.
As this agreement continues to be hammered out, the fisheries below Flaming Gorge Reservoir, Lake Powell, and Navajo Reservoir may be impacted. The Green River (below Flaming Gorge) and the San Juan (below Navajo) are two of the premier trout tailwaters in the world. The trout fishery below Lake Powell is also renowned for its sight-fishing opportunities.