NPR's Andy Bowers reports that unless there's a last-minute deal, California water users are about to be put on a crash diet. U.S. Interior Secretary Gale Norton says she will curtail California's chronic overuse of Colorado River water on Jan. 1 -- 12 years earlier than planned -- because the state has no plan in place for weaning itself of water overuse. Water district managers say they can use reserves for up to two years to manage the immediate impact.
Copyright 2002 NPR