Earth ChangesColorado River states still have no unified long-term management plan and ‘are just about out of time,’ experts warn Posted on June 16, 2025 by Administrator Concerningly low amounts of water are flowing from the Rocky Mountain snowpack this spring, a summer of drought looms across swaths of the West, and the negotiators tasked with devising a sustainable long-term water plan for the 40 million people who rely on the Colorado River are running out of time.