This week, water levels in Lake Powell hit their lowest point of 2026. The nation's second-largest reservoir is stretched thin. Drought and climate change are adding less water, and demand from cities and farms has not been reined in accordingly. The result is a reservoir that sits less than a quarter full, with more shrinking to come.
The reservoir, which is held back by Glen Canyon Dam in Northern Arizona, has seen a long trend of decline going back to the early 2000s. In recent years, its water levels have been at the heart of contentious negotiations about sharing the Colorado River.
On May 7, Powell reached a new low for 2026. It then began a modest rise due to the inflow of Rocky Mountain snowmelt. That inflow was exceptionally low after a historically dry winter. Its levels also climbed thanks to emergency releases from upstream reservoirs, part of a short-term plan from the federal government to prop up Powell with water from Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Utah and Wyoming.
Powell water levels peaked on June 1 and then began their slow drop to this year's new record low, which was set on June 30.
For the rest of 2026, every day Powell will drop to a new annual low, according to Jack Schmidt, director of the Center for Colorado River Studies at Utah State University. Powell is now only slightly above its record low set in April 2023.
"The future role of Flaming Gorge releases will be to slow the rate of Powell's recession, but not to actually increase Powell storage," he wrote in an email to KJZZ. "We will soon be in record-breaking territory."
If water levels drop much lower than they are now, hydropower generators inside the dam could be forced to shut down. Further drops may jeopardize the ability to pass a sufficient amount of water from Lake Powell into the Colorado River on the other side. Short-term fixes have prevented both from happening as negotiators have struggled to agree on a long-term plan to reduce demand and stabilize the reservoir.
Upstream from the dam, dropping water levels have revealed striking geological features and thriving ecosystems of native plants and animals. Some environmentalists have called for the reservoir to be phased out, allowing for Glen Canyon — which they have dubbed a "lost national park" — to reemerge from underwater.
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