Colorado Accuses Nebraska of Stealing Water in Escalating Supreme Court Fight
The dispute comes as competition for water intensifies across the American West amid drought and population growth.
Colorado has accused its neighboring state, Nebraska, of stealing water according to a decades-old agreement governing the South Platte River Compact. Colorado's Attorney General Phil Weiser stated that Colorado will defend its water rights and is asserting its claims against Nebraska for using water that Colorado believes rightfully belongs to them. If anything, Nebraska owes Colorado for the water that has been unjustly taken.
The dispute intensifies as competition for water increases across the American West due to prolonged drought, population growth, and climate pressures affecting rivers governed by historic interstate agreements. The core of the conflict lies in the allocation of water from the South Platte River, a resource that has become more valuable in drought-prone regions.
In 1923, Colorado and Nebraska signed the South Platte River Compact, which delineated each state's rights to water from the river and was later approved by Congress in 1926. The dispute escalated in 2021 when Nebraska revived plans for the Perkins County Canal, arguing that the project is needed to secure water entitled to Nebraska under the compact. Nebraska claimed that Colorado's water use was reducing Nebraska's supply, leading to Nebraska filing a lawsuit against Colorado in the Supreme Court.
In July 2025, Nebraska accused Colorado of failing to deliver water as required by the compact and interfering with Nebraska's efforts to develop the Perkins County Canal, which Nebraska claims is vital for securing future water supplies. The Supreme Court agreed to hear Nebraska's complaint in June 2026, and Colorado responded with a 58-page counterclaims filing in which it argues that Nebraska is violating the compact through excessive groundwater pumping that results in reduced flows into Colorado.
Colorado seeks to dismiss one aspect of Nebraska's lawsuit, arguing that there is no legal basis for Nebraska's claim that Colorado's water administration system is unlawfully complex. The state questions the value of Nebraska's proposed Perkins County Canal, stating that the project has significant technical and financial risks and may yield too little water to justify the investment.
Moreover, Colorado asserts that Nebraska does not possess the right to a fixed amount of water flowing across the state line and that Nebraska has priority rights over certain Colorado water users when water is available under the compact.
However, Colorado is not only defending itself but also seeks to award damages, compensate Colorado for water allegedly depleted by Nebraska, prohibit specific pumping and diversion practices in Nebraska, and issue injunctive relief to protect Colorado's water rights. Nebraska contends that Colorado's water-use practices deprive Nebraska of water guaranteed under the compact and maintains that the Perkins County Canal is necessary to protect its rights.
The case now rests with a court-appointed special master who will oversee proceedings until any eventual Supreme Court ruling. Interstate water disputes typically take years to resolve, implying that the fight over the South Platte River could persist well into the next decade.
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