Environment

Lake Mead Drops Below 1,080 Feet For First Time in 78 Years; Las Vegas Set To Tap 'Third Straw'

The water level on Nevada's Lake Mead dropped below 1,080 feet for the first time in 78 years on Tuesday.

The last time the water level was below 1,080 feet on Lake Mead was in May 1937, about the time it was being filled in its first few years of existence. Lake Mead was created by the damming of the Colorado River after the Hoover Dam was completed in 1935-1936.

According to the National Weather Service, the lake level was at 1,079.9 feet as of Tuesday evening.

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Southern Nevada, which includes Las Vegas, gets 90 percent of its water from the Colorado River, according to the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA). The SNWA is slated to complete a third water intake dubbed the "third straw" this summer to keep the water flowing to communities that need it even if water levels keep falling.

The National Park Service says the intake for the "third straw" will be at 860 feet, which should be low enough to draw water from Lake Mead at elevations as low as 1,000 feet. If the lake level falls below 1,050 feet the first intake, or "first straw", would no longer be usable. The second intake, or "second straw", would be usable until the lake level falls to about 1,000 feet.

SNWA says the primary objective for the "third straw" is to preserve the existing water intake capacity should the lake level fall below the 1,050 foot elevation of the first intake. Secondary objectives include improving the water quality and the system reliability.