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

Small farmers wait for California’s groundwater hammer to fall

Farmers, large and small, are beginning to grapple with what the state’s first major groundwater regulation means for them.

Questions in North Park as Colorado makes case for new rules to measure water...

As the gap between water supplies and demands narrows in northwestern Colorado, state officials want to ensure that, as best as reasonably can be done, every last drop gets measured and recorded.
Homestake Reservoir photo 1

Homestake Reservoir release proves tricky to track

Front Range water providers released water downstream to test how to get it to the state line in the event of a Colorado River Compact call.

9 graphics that visualize EPA’s climate change indicators for snow

The downward trajectory for snow carries serious consequences for water supplies, wildlife habitat, wildfire activity and outdoor recreation.

CD3 candidates agree on protecting Western Slope water, reservoir enlargements

Diane Mitsch Bush, the Democratic candidate for Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, pledged cooperation and Lauren Boebert, her Republican challenger, promised to fight — the Front Range, neighboring states and the federal government — to protect Western Slope water.

As 2020 kicks in, historic Colorado River Drought Plan will get its first test

This year, the first-ever Colorado River Drought Contingency Plan is set to launch, and water officials expect 2020 to bring unprecedented changes to the way the river is run, including cutbacks in water use by some states.
Ruedi Reservoir on the Fryingpan River photo

Ruedi Reservoir at lowest level in two decades

Ruedi Reservoir on Colorado's Fryingpan River is 54% full and at its lowest level in 19 years.

New Rules

As climate change and overuse reduce water supplies, the gap between “paper water” (the legal right to use water) and “actual water” (what’s available) is widening.

Colorado official says demand management program holds water

At the heart of a potential program is a reduction in water use in an attempt to send up to 500,000 acre-feet downstream to Lake Powell to bolster thereservoir and meet 1922 Colorado River Compact obligations.

Photos: Colorado River and tributaries, April 2019

This photo gallery features images shot during a road trip along the Colorado River and two of its tributaries in Colorado: the Blue River and White River. DateApril...