For more than 60 years, Lake Powell and Lake Mead have served as the twin pillars of the Colorado River system, storing water for cities, farms and hydropower across the American Southwest. But as drought, rising temperatures, and chronic overuse continue to shrink the river, a growing number of scientists and water experts argue that trying to keep both reservoirs operating as they were originally designed may no longer be realistic.

The Colorado River's prolonged decline is forcing difficult tradeoffs among agriculture, cities, hydropower, and new industries as water shortages intensify across the American…

For more than 60 years, Lake Powell and Lake Mead have served as the twin pillars of the Colorado River system, storing water for cities, farms and hydropower across the American…