PBS News Presents “Tipping Point: Colorado River Reckoning”

Arlington, VA (July 19, 2024)–PBS News’ virtual Town Hall, “Tipping Point: Colorado River Reckoning,” will be streamed live from the Hoover Dam Spillway House at 7:00 pm E.T. on Wednesday, July 24^th on PBS News’ social and digital platforms.  Audience questions may be submitted online both in advance and during the program.

The 90-minute live event will delve into the urgent challenges facing the Colorado River Basin states, Mexico, and a host of Native American tribes. They are currently working with the Interior Department’s Bureau of Reclamation to set new guidelines for water management when the current agreements expire in 2026.

Despite the current disagreements between the Upper Basin States and the Lower Basin States, there is a potential for all stakeholders to work together. States, cities, the agriculture industry, Tribes, the conservation community, and Mexico all have a vested interest in preventing a full-on “Water War.”

Forty million people depend on the Colorado River for water, and it irrigates four million acres of some of the most productive agricultural land in the United States. As of June 2024, the river’s storage system is at about 41% capacity. Scientists say climate change and the expanding use of water along the river will continue to overtax supplies going forward.

The webcast will be hosted by PBS News Hour science correspondent and Tipping Point executive producer Miles O’Brien. It includes conversations with these guests:

•  Bruce Babbitt, former Arizona governor and former U.S. Secretary of the Interior
•  John Fleck, Director, Water Resources Program at the University of New Mexico & author of several books on the Colorado River Basin
•  JB Hamby, Chairman, Colorado River Board of California & Colorado River Commissioner for the state of California
•  Mark Kelly, United States Senator from Arizona
•  Karen Kwon, Associate Project Director, Colorado River Sustainability Campaign
•  Pat Mulroy, President and CEO of Sustainable Strategies Consulting and former CEO of the Southern Nevada Water Authority
• Jim Lochhead, Former CEO, Denver Water
• Jack Schmidt, Professor at Utah State University’s Quinney College of Natural Resource
• Heather Tanana, Visiting Professor, UC Irvine school of Law & member of the Navajo nation

“Tipping Point: Colorado River Reckoning” is a Mobias Media production for NewsHour Productions. It is made possible by the generous support of the Walton Family Foundation. We also extend our gratitude to the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Park Foundation for their additional contributions.

Media contact: Ella Richardson, erichardson (at) newshour (dot) org