Colorado River cuts won’t make Phoenix taps go dry, but the backup plan will...

Under the searing desert sun, Max Wilson watched water flow through a canal in north Phoenix. This unassuming strip of blue next to a...

Years of Colorado River talks failed to produce a deal. How much should the...

Two thick, orange, bound books sit on a library table at Colorado State University. “This is the original compilation,” said Patty Rettig, a water resources...

The Colorado River got so low, rafting companies canceled this popular trip for the...

Most river rafting operators dabble in soothsaying. Every day, sometimes every hour, they closely study river flows and try to predict what kind of...

‘Pain and suffering’: What the feds’ Lake Powell proposal means for Utah and other...

This story was originally published by The Salt Lake Tribune on August, 12, 2026. After years of analysis and stalled negotiations, the federal government...

Peaches pay the bills for Western Colorado farmers, but prolonged drought makes their future...

On a warm morning in Palisade, Colorado, Bruce Talbott walks through his orchards, picking and discarding peaches he knows won’t sell. With just one...

The clock is ticking for New Mexico to cut Rio Grande water use

Photos by Paul Ratje. Reporting supported by the Water Desk at the University of Colorado Boulder. HATCH, N.M.—After 13 years, Texas and New Mexico have...

Colorado water officials announce creation of state-run conservation program

In the culmination of a process that has been years in the making, Colorado officials Wednesday announced the creation of a state-run water conservation...

California will soon have more than 300 data centers. Where will they get their...

A proposed data center in the Imperial Valley would need 750,000 gallons of water a day. Satisfying the thirst of 24 more facilities expected to open in the state will be challenging, experts and officials say.

Hoover Dam approaches a hydropower cliff

Some day in the next 12 months – maybe in late-August, maybe not until next spring – Lake Mead will drop below the critical...

Lake Powell is draining away from Bullfrog Marina. Now it has to move

For Dave and Gaye Babcock, Lake Powell is like part of the family.  The couple from Helper, Utah, have been coming for nearly 50 years....