water

The Senate on Wednesday, March 29 approved a resolution to overturn the Biden administration’s expanded protections for waterways. President Joe Biden has said he will likely veto the measure, which also passed the House in mid-March.

The United Nations recognized World Water Day on Wednesday, March 22, 2023 as an annual effort to emphasize the water crisis — a familiar issue to water leaders in the Western U.S.

The Environmental Protection Agency proposed new drinking water standards this week for PFAS — the increasingly pervasive toxic chemicals that are highly prevalent in Colorado.

The Biden administration recently announced $728 million in investments to address drought and climate change in the West. The funding will kickstart conservation programs, environmental restoration projects and water infrastructure construction, among other efforts.

Lake Powell is shrinking as climate change and steady demand cause trouble for states that rely on the Colorado River. The Bureau of Reclamation is scrambling to keep hydropower generators running in Glen Canyon Dam.

Water officials across the West have been negotiating a crisis on the Colorado River. Drought is putting pressure on the 7-state basin, and the nation’s two largest reservoirs recently reached record lows.

Six of the seven states that use water from the Colorado River proposed a way for the federal government to cut back on water use and protect dropping water levels in Lake Mead and Lake Powell.

As the West grapples with a long-running drought, a new report suggests states across the region can be doing a lot more to improve water efficiency and conservation.

As parts of our region face the worst drought in centuries, some states are looking for new ways to create fresh water. One idea that’s gaining interest in the Mountain West is desalination, which involves removing minerals from salty water.

Colorado has pledged to eliminate thousands of acres of irrigated agriculture in a focused region on the eastern plains. The burden falls mostly on private landowners. But the state also has irrigation wells there. And local farmers say they shouldn’t be the only ones to sacrifice their water rights.