Geography

Colorado’s water forecast, already strained by back-to-back drought years, is unlikely to brighten this fall and winter.

As California’s seasons become warmer and drier, state officials are pondering whether the water rights permitting system needs revising.

Flow targets for the environment and recreation are lacking, according to a recent report.

Two new books provide insights into the willful ignorance that lead to the West’s water woes.

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.

The snowpack that 40 million people rely on for water was supposed to provide a bounty this year. Instead, much of it melted away fast and early — part of a long-term trend associated with climate change.

Cities in New Mexico and Colorado are juggling water scarcity concerns over the Rio Grande.

The Bureau of Reclamation gives funding through its WaterSMART program to five Western states to help combat drought and infrastructure issues.

Amid one of the hottest summers on record for Colorado, Dillon Reservoir is 94% full, nearly 5 feet below its capacity. This level of drought has been manageable this year for Denver Water partly because of the 2018-19 winter.

A $1 million science experiment on Colorado hay fields is backed by powerful water groups, farm interests, and environmentalists.