The Brief

PHOENIX - Water experts are expressing growing concern after seven states, including Arizona, missed a key deadline this week to negotiate a new agreement for apportioning Colorado River water.

What we know:

The deadline, set for Tuesday, Nov. 11, passed without a deal, leaving the future management of the crucial resource uncertain as the current agreement expires at the end of 2026.

"The hope was that the seven basin states that helped govern the operations of the Colorado River would come up with a plan for how we're going to operate the river after 2026. That didn't happen," said Cynthia Campbell, director of policy innovation for the Arizona Water Innovation Initiative .

The negotiations were reportedly delayed by disputes over sharing water cuts between the Upper

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