Water Resources in Southern Nevada
Southern Nevada gets about 88 percent of its water supply from the Colorado River. The other 12 percent of our water comes from groundwater that is pumped out through wells.

The Colorado River is fed mostly by snowmelt in the Rocky Mountains. The groundwater aquifer is filled by water from our nearby mountain ranges in Southern Nevada.

Colorado River allocation
Nevada is allocated 300,000 acre-feet of Colorado River water under the Colorado River Compact that is also known as the Law of the River. This complex body of laws, court cases and regulations guide the use of Colorado River water.

Six other states and Mexico share the Colorado River. When the Colorado River Compact was created in 1922, Nevada's population was small and the state didn't forsee ever needing more than 300,000 acre-feet of water.

As Southern's Nevada population has grown, its water needs have increased. Our current Colorado River apportionment is not enough to provide for all of our water needs. We can stretch our apportionment through conservation, but we also must find other water sources to support our growing community.