More water headed to Lake Mead, but won't be enough to pull it back from near-record lows

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – One of the main reservoirs in a vast Colorado River water system that is struggling to serve the booming Southwest will get more water this year.

But the additional water that federal officials said Wednesday will be sent to Lake Mead won't be enough to pull the reservoir behind Hoover Dam back from near-record lows.

Those levels have alarmed water managers, farmers and cities throughout the region. They depend on the lake for some of their water supply amid a grueling 14-year drought.

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials say there has been near-normal runoff this year into Lake Powell, near the Arizona-Utah border and upriver from Lake Mead.

That will allow them to send 10 percent more water to Lake Mead than they did the past year.