As Colorado River stakeholders scramble to negotiate the basin's long-term operational guidelines, the Trump administration is expressing support for a state-level consensus agreement — while warning that federal officials will step in if necessary.

A message relayed on behalf of Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on Thursday indicated that his department would "be intensely, consistently and constantly involved in discussions with the representatives of the seven basin states to forge a path forwarded together on the Colorado."

"He really wants to have the department help you arrive at a seven-state solution," Scott Cameron, senior adviser to Burgum, told Colorado River commissioners from Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New Mexico.

"Having said that, though, in the, we hope, highly unlikely and unfortunate event that there is no seven-state agreement, then he is prepared to act," Cameron said of Burgum.

Cameron was participating in a meeting of the Upper Colorado River Commission, which convened to discuss ongoing negotiations over the artery's future, as well as shorter-term hydrological matters.

The seven basin states have been engaging in intense negotiations for more than a year over an update to the river’s interim guidelines, which were set in 2007 and expire at the end of 2026.

Key differences have persisted among the Upper and Lower Basin states — Arizona, Nevada and California —as federal environmental review deadlines loom near.

While the Lower Basin has prioritized shared cuts across the watershed, the Upper Basin has favored a plan that reflects the dynamic hydrological conditions of a region reliant upon mountain snowpack.

The final rules, which must also receive the Interior Department’s approval, will steer conservation policies for a 1,450-mile river that serves about 40 million people in the U.S. and Mexico.

"I urge you to continue to work with your commissioners and give them the freedom of maneuver to strike an appropriate deal so that all seven states can move forward on your own terms," Cameron said on Thursday.

In his role........

© The Hill