Lake Mead water level rises, defies projections
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LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — When it comes to water and Lake Mead, every little bit helps, right?
That is proving to be correct this spring as the water level at Lake Mead fights to stay above the most recent projections put out by the government.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s “Most Probable 24-Month Study” published in March, Lake Mead was projected to have dropped to approximately 1,043.06 feet above sea level. But as of Monday morning, Lake Mead’s water level was at 1,045.91, almost 3 feet above the projected level. It’s a positive trend seen in the last three months of projections.
End-of-month projections for Lake Mead
Lake Mead’s elevation is shown as feet above sea level.
Elevation as of April 3: 1,045.92
Source: US Bureau of Reclamation
| DATE | JAN 2023 | FEB 2023 | MAR 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MAR 2023 | 1040.83 | 1042.84 | 1043.06 |
| APR 2023 | 1035.85 | 1038.85 | 1036.30 |
| MAY 2023 | 1030.53 | 1034.56 | 1031.53 |
| JUN 2023 | 1026.47 | 1031.89 | 1030.27 |
| JUL 2023 | 1026.03 | 1032.57 | 1031.33 |
| AUG 2023 | 1026.87 | 1033.30 | 1034.15 |
| SEP 2023 | 1025.71 | 1033.07 | 1034.27 |
| OCT 2023 | 1025.05 | 1032.41 | 1033.56 |
| NOV 2023 | 1024.47 | 1031.45 | 1032.40 |
| DEC 2023 | 1026.91 | 1033.42 | 1034.62 |
| JAN 2024 | 1029.90 | 1036.50 | 1037.18 |
| FEB 2024 | 1032.11 | 1038.75 | 1038.96 |
| MAR 2024 | 1030.15 | 1036.81 | 1036.75 |
| APR 2024 | 1024.58 | 1031.42 | 1031.07 |
| MAY 2024 | 1018.58 | 1025.52 | 1024.97 |
| JUN 2024 | 1013.71 | 1020.71 | 1020.33 |
| JUL 2024 | 1012.27 | 1019.21 | 1018.91 |
| AUG 2024 | 1012.10 | 1018.94 | 1019.17 |
| SEP 2024 | 1010.38 | 1017.18 | 1017.68 |
| OCT 2024 | 1012.92 | 1017.07 | 1017.88 |
| NOV 2024 | 1014.13 | 1015.99 | 1016.77 |
| DEC 2024 | 1017.57 | 1017.58 | 1018.52 |
| JAN 2025 | — | 1020.81 | 1021.42 |
As shown in the graphic below, Lake Mead’s water level did rise at the beginning of this year, followed by a small drop. However, partially due to recent rain in the area, the water level stabilized for a few days before rising almost half a foot at the end of March. Since then, the level of the lake has dropped again by about half a foot.
To the northeast, Lake Powell has shown signs of life and has risen more than a foot over the last month after dropping to a new all-time low in mid-March.
As of one week ago, snowpack has built the Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) stored in the Colorado Rockies to 158% of the average. That was up about 8% in only one week.
Currently, Lake Mead is a little over 5 feet higher than the record-low hit on July 27, 2022, when the water level was measured at 1,040.71. According to the latest projection from the Bureau of Reclamation, published before the recent rain, Lake Mead could drop to 1,036.9 feet by the end of April, just over 9 feet lower than its current level.