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

How Hudbay’s Santa Rita mining will impact Southern Arizona’s waterways

The proposed Copper World Complex mine is carving roads and berms that will impact wildlife and waterflow.
Parshall Flume photo

State engineers developing measurement rules for water diversions

Colorado officials are preparing for a future with less water by developing rules for users to measure how much they're taking from streams.
Crystal River photo 1

Crystal River Wild & Scenic advocates hope to learn from the past

Residents of Colorado's Pitkin County are reviving efforts to secure a Wild & Scenic designation on the Crystal River, but it won't be easy.

State demand-management investigation moves ahead

Water managers and experts from across Colorado are investigating the feasibility of a voluntary, temporary and compensated water-use-reduction program.

Colorado mitigation “bank” to offset wetland damage, meet Clean Water Act rules

A developer who disrupts wetlands or streams can offset that impact by buying credits generated from floodplain and ecosystem restoration.

Supporters say Proposition DD will ‘fund Colorado’s Water Plan,’ but what does that mean?

What kinds of water projects and programs will the ballot measure support?
Streets are empty in Central City, with casinos shuttered and hundreds of workers laid off. The pandemic is bad news for the state's new sports-betting tax, which was to have helped fund the Colorado Water Plan. April 21, 2020. Credit: Jerd Smith

New gambling tax revenue forecasts in free fall; cash for water plan in limbo

It’s hard to generate money from a sports-betting tax when COVID-19 has removed athletes from the fields, courts and stadiums where they normally play.

Photos: Rio Grande headwaters aerials, May 2024

This page in our free multimedia library features aerial photos of the Rio Grande's headwaters in southwest Colorado. The Rio Grande begins in the San Juan Mountains and travels some...

Rio Blanco secures water right for dam-and-reservoir project

A judge has granted a water conservancy district in northwest Colorado a water right for a new dam-and-reservoir project that top state engineers had opposed.
Cattle photo

The Southwest monsoon season is changing, forcing ranchers and Indigenous farmers to adapt

Changing storms in the Southwest are altering timeless food traditions as researchers grapple with how to study the monsoon’s erratic nature.