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Western water framework

Western Water and Working Lands Framework for Conservation Action

There is an increasing demand for water in the West, but available water is in fast decline. Impacts of climate change, including the increasing frequency and intensity of drought, are already being experienced across the West and are projected to worsen. 

The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is laying the foundation to help producers conserve water, address climate change and build drought resilience in the West through a new framework, the Western Water and Working Lands Framework for Conservation Action.  

In this framework, NRCS identifies six conservation challenges, the need for conservation on vulnerable agricultural landscapes, and 13 strategies to help NRCS state leaders, water resource managers, and producers respond to these challenges. 

States included in the framework are Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming
States included in the framework are Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming

Conservation Challenges

  • Forecasting water supply
  • Sustaining agricultural productivity
  • Protecting groundwater availability
  • Protecting surface water availability
  • Managing and restoring rangelands and forestlands
  • Responding to disruptions from catastrophic events
     

Response Strategies

  • Improve reliability of water supply forecasts
  • Improve soil moisture and irrigation water management
  • Improve water and nutrient management in crop fields and pastures
  • Modernize water infrastructure
  • Improve community water supply by completing watershed projects
  • Increase reuse of wastewater for agriculture and conservation
  • Prolong aquifer life
  • Complete managed aquifer recharge projects
  • Reduce surface water withdrawals
  • Install conservation systems that protect water quality
  • Restore and protect streams and wetlands
  • Manage and restore rangelands and forestlands
  • Increase resilience during disaster recovery