Lake Powell officials take emergency steps to preserve hydropower from Glen Canyon Dam

The first step is releasing extra water from upstream on the Colorado River this year. The second is water can be held again in Lake Powell itself, instead of being sent to downstream states.

The US Bureau of Reclamation expects the dual actions will boost Lake Powell by nearly 1 million acre-feet of water. The reservoir contained about 5.8 million acre-feet of water as of Tuesday, according to the bureau, although its full capacity is round 25 million acre-feet.

With out the emergency steps, the bureau estimated there was a couple of 25% chance the Glen Canyon Dam might have stopped producing hydropower by January. The dam generates power for as many as 5.8 million properties and businesses in seven states.

The company mentioned in a statement Tuesday's resolution was supposed to guard "hydropower technology, the power's key infrastructure, and the water supply for the city of Page, Arizona, and the LeChee Chapter of the Navajo Nation."

The emergency actions will purchase the federal authorities 12 months as it considers longer-term measures.

"We now have by no means taken this step before, however the potential danger on the horizon calls for immediate motion," Assistant Secretary of Water and Science, Tanya Trujillo told reporters. "We need to work collectively to stabilize the reservoir earlier than we face a bigger crisis."

Lake Powell has dropped around 100 toes within the last three years as the West has been besieged by drought. Because the water degree has fallen, Glen Canyon Dam has lost about 16% of its capability to generate power.

Bryan Hill, common supervisor of the public energy utility in Web page, Arizona, likened the scenario to judgment day.

"We're knocking on the door of judgment day," Hill beforehand instructed CNN. "Judgment day being when we don't have any water to provide anyone."

The selections made for Lake Powell also affect its downstream neighbor, Lake Mead, which is the largest reservoir in the country.

Water cuts for those who rely on Lake Mead started in January, and Tuesday's resolution might lead to additional restrictions.

Lake Mead's water stage is now low sufficient to reveal one of the reservoir's unique, 1971 water consumption valves for the primary time. The valve can now not draw water, in accordance with the Southern Nevada Water Authority, the agency liable for managing water resources for 2.2 million folks in southern Nevada, including Las Vegas.

Officers over the weekend made another disturbing discovery introduced on by Lake Mead's plummeting water degree: a body in a barrel police say is a likely murder victim from the Eighties.

"The lake has drained dramatically over the past 15 years," said Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Murder Lieutenant Ray Spencer. "It is possible that we will find additional our bodies which were dumped in Lake Mead" as the water degree drops more.