Conservation

As climate change brings warmer weather, Westerners are looking for ways to protect the region’s rivers and streams. In a special report for the Water Desk, Jerd Smith of Fresh Water News explains a strategy for safeguarding Colorado’s Yampa River.

Tree rings can tell a story. Wide bands signal a wet period, while narrow ones show a drought. Whole ecosystems can be encoded in trees. In Western Colorado, scientists...

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

In the past few decades, cities in Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada have vastly increased their water use efficiency. They’ve also learned lessons that can inform other cities’ efforts.

A new analysis of residential water use by Fresh Water News shows Colorado's statewide savings from water conservation in recent years may have stalled out.

New Mexico faces tough choices as a dire and historic drought continues and the Rio Grande is unable to give everyone what they want or need.

Arizona’s powerful will to grow is challenged by extreme heat, deep drought, and serious water-related stress.

Several groups are studying demand management, underscoring persistent tensions between the Western Slope and Front Range water managers.

A recent study of a Colorado demand-management program found that the benefits would be comparable to the negative secondary impacts.

Glen Canyon Dam, climate change and invasive plant species are threatening the Colorado River.