LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Southern Nevada’s top Colorado River negotiator says the region is better prepared than any other city on the river to withstand new federal water cuts, even as he warns the basin is entering one of its toughest chapters yet.
Southern Nevada Water Authority executive John Entsminger sat down with FOX5 during a Colorado River summit hosted by Rep. Susie Lee at the Springs Preserve — his first in-depth conversation since the federal government released its post-2026 Final Environmental Impact Statement on July 31.
What the FEIS requires
The 1,600-page FEIS lays out a new operating blueprint for the Colorado River beginning in 2027 and calls for 1.5 million acre-feet of reductions across Nevada, Arizona and California — enough water to supply roughly three million average homes for a year.
Entsminger said the Colorado River has long been regarded as a model of cooperation among competing water users, but the next few years will test that reputation.
“If you look at the history of the river, the Colorado River and the seven states that share it have widely been regarded as the most cooperative river, really, in the world,” he said. “The challenge right now is to get those seven states to agree to the next set of operating guidelines and how we move forward.”
He added that the seven basin states have historically worked to resolve differences at the negotiating table rather than in court.
“There’s been a lot of discussion around, is a two-year, rock-solid operating plan a better approach at this juncture?” Entsminger said. “That’s the overall goal — to land on something everybody can live with a little bit better.”
Southern Nevada’s water reserves
Entsminger stressed that Southern Nevada has spent decades preparing for deep shortages.
“We’ve banked 11 years of our supply,” he said. “We have the most secure delivery system of any city in the Colorado River Basin. We’ve been getting ready for this for 25 years. We’re planners and we have a plan. If the federal government and the other states fail, we have a plan for how we’re going to take care of the people in Nevada.”
Nevada holds a small legal entitlement — about 1.8% of the river — but has stored the equivalent of years of use in Lake Mead and in local aquifers. Entsminger noted that older rules, including the 2007 operating guidelines, allow Southern Nevada to continue accessing its intentionally created surplus in Lake Mead through 2036, and certain Virgin and Muddy River rights through 2056.
“So when I say we do the most with the least, the math doesn’t lie,” he said. “The intentional surplus is not in danger because the 2007 guidelines have what we call a tail in law.”
FEIS vs. record of decision
Entsminger also addressed confusion about what the FEIS does — and what still needs to happen before new rules take effect.
“We’ve seen from the federal government a Final Environmental Impact Statement,” he said. “We have not seen a record of decision. And until we see that, that’s what will control the guidelines.”
The Bureau of Reclamation is expected to issue a formal record of decision later this year. That document, not the FEIS itself, will control how Hoover Dam and the rest of the system are operated under the new rules.
Although the FEIS outlines a 10-year framework, Entsminger said negotiations are focused on a shorter initial step.
“I think even though the current federal FEIS is a 10-year framework, it’s really geared towards a two-year plan,” he said. “That’s the only thing that’s being discussed at this point in time — how do we operate over the next two years.”
He said it is “critical” to get through that first operating period so the parties can “immediately pivot to a longer-term approach” and “get to those more important negotiations, quite frankly.”
In the meantime, he said, the federal government will still have to make short-term operational calls.
“Under the August 24-month study, [Reclamation] is going to have to make some decisions how they’re going to operate Hoover Dam just for the next 30, 40 days,” Entsminger said.
Bad water years and negotiations
The summit came during what Entsminger called a “terrible water year,” with low snowpack and continued stress on the system. He said difficult conditions can push negotiations forward.
“Bad water years always motivate discussions,” he said. “I would harken back to 2019. Right as we were about to sign the drought contingency plan, we got one of the four wettest years in the 21st century. And that wet year almost derailed the deal. So everybody’s like, ‘Oh, no need to sacrifice, we’ve got a really good water year.’ So it is ironic, but bad water years always incentivize negotiation.”
Nevada’s legal position
Nevada has publicly aligned itself with Gov. Joe Lombardo’s position that the state will oppose any outcome that imposes unreasonable impacts on Nevada. In a statement released the day the FEIS was published, Lombardo said the plan “seeks to impose unrealistic reductions on Nevada and our water users.”
“Nevada has put forward reasonable compromise proposals to the other states, and I will fight against any outcome that imposes unreasonable impacts to our communities and those living in them,” Lombardo said.
Entsminger echoed that position while emphasizing that negotiation remains the state’s preference.
“Certainly on behalf of Nevada, our first, second, and third choice is negotiation and cooperation,” Entsminger said. “But at the end of the day, if somebody wants to challenge something, we also have to protect our rights.”
Entsminger warned that broad litigation could take years and involve not just states, but tribes and environmental groups across multiple courts.
“In terms of how the alliances match up in litigation, frankly, that’ll be one of the more fascinating parts,” he said. “You’re not necessarily talking about one court, one venue, one homogeneous group against another. There’s going to be a lot of interlocking and competing issues if you get into that.”
He made clear that Nevada will not accept a federal decision it believes is unfair.
“The Colorado River is 90% of the water supply for 76% of the population of Nevada,” Entsminger said. “We’re not just going to lose. If negotiations fail, we will protect the people of Nevada.”
Hoover Dam power generation
The FEIS identifies 950 feet above sea level as the “minimum power pool” — the level at which Hoover Dam would stop generating electricity and downstream releases would have to go through outlet works instead of turbines.
Entsminger said the Bureau of Reclamation has already taken steps over the last decade to reduce the risk of an abrupt power shutoff.
“There was a point in time, a decade, decade and a half ago, where if Lake Mead had hit a certain elevation, all the power generation would have stopped,” he said. “But they’ve put in new, more advanced turbines, so the power generation goes down incrementally, but it doesn’t just reach an off switch. So the power generation should be safe for the foreseeable future.”
What Southern Nevadans can do
Entsminger said individual residents still have a role to play.
“In terms of what this community can do, I’m always a big proponent of self-help,” he said. “It’s really hot right now. I get that everybody’s probably watering six days a week. But are you watering more than your allotted time? Because you really don’t need to overwater outside of your six minutes or so.”
He urged residents to follow assigned watering days and to remove non-functional turf — grass that no one uses.
“If you have grass at your house or in your HOA, if the only people that walk on it is the people that mow it, make an investment in your community,” he said. “Get that grass out.”
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