An initiative of the Center for Environmental Journalism at the University of Colorado Boulder

Sunrise at Lake Powell. Photo: Adobe Stock

Colorado River drought study advances as participants call for fairness between cities, ranches

Can Colorado find a fair way to set aside as much as 500,000 acre-feet of water in Lake Powell to protect the state from future drought?
River kayaking photo

Conservation groups want recreation water right tied to natural river features

Three conservation groups in Colorado are working on a revision to a state law that would allow natural river features to get a water right.
Old cottonwoods line the banks and trails of the historic Denver Highline Canal

Denver’s High Line Canal a study in using something old to solve new problem

Infrastructure built more than a century ago still endures, but some of Colorado’s old irrigation ditches have been repurposed to meet the moment. The High Line Canal—a 71-mile-long former irrigation conveyance turned greenway and stormwater filtration tool—winds its way through the Denver metro area as an artery of infrastructure boasting a story of adaptation.

Photos: San Pedro River, Arizona

This page features photos of the San Pedro River in southeast Arizona, a hotspot for biological diversity. The San Pedro River originates about 10 miles below the international border, just...

Aspen activist wants ‘rights of nature’ for the Roaring Fork River

Movement reimagines humans’ relationship to local waterways

Photos: Roosevelt Lake and Dam, Arizona, February 2021

This page features photos of Theodore Roosevelt Lake and Theodore Roosevelt Dam, along the Salt River east of Phoenix. Roosevelt Dam, which rises 357 feet, was the first structure completed...

Q&A: Defining the “snow deluge” and projecting its future

Scientist Adrienne Marshall explains why these extreme snow years are expected to decline in our warming world.

Photos: Laguna Grande Restoration Area, Mexico

This page features photos of the Laguna Grande Restoration Area in Baja California, Mexico. The Laguna Grande Restoration Area is a 1,200-acre plot of land located on the Colorado River’s...
Denver Capitol photo

Colorado lawmakers say “yes” to more than $53M in new water funding

Colorado lawmakers approved bills to help finance the Colorado Water Plan, protect watersheds, mitigate wildfires and recover from drought.
Glen Canyon Dam photo

Electric costs in Colorado set to surge as Lake Powell struggles to produce hydropower

A federal agency aims to offset rising costs linked to Lake Powell’s inability to produce as much hydropower due to drought.