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

Corporate support for the river

For decades, water managers and environmentalists have worked to keep a critical stretch of the drought-stressed Colorado River healthy enough to support endangered fish. This year, they’re getting a...
Colorado stream photo 1

Special Report: Colorado launches major new series of stream protections

The process of protecting environmental flows takes an important step forward as three laws passed in 2020 start to take effect this year.
Beaver dam photo

Scientists: Beavers latest tool to emerge in rebuilding drought-stricken streams

Beavers are making a comeback as researchers look for ways to restore rivers and wetlands while improving the health of drought-stressed aquifers.

Wildfires and wetlands

Residents in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, see first-hand how wildfires can damage wetlands and watersheds vitally important to their water supply. Jerd Smith reports for The Water Desk. https://player.vimeo.com/video/553127855 Length: 2:03 Download script Download...
Senator Beck Basin photo

New dust-on-snow monitoring technology coming to Steamboat lab, expanding a growing snowpack data network

Technology to study the impact of dust on downwind mountain ecosystems in Colorado and Utah will likely be installed in the Rockies this fall.
Hydrant photo

Is a hacker targeting your drinking water? COVID-19 exposes problems in Colorado, elsewhere

A cyberattack in Florida has shown that outdated water control technologies have become more exposed to hacking.

Colorado is examining water speculation, and finding it’s ‘all the problems’ in one

Water speculation has been sparking debate in Colorado over the last few months.
Dry agriculture photo

Dust beneath snow: As Colorado reservoirs drop, farmers fear the worst

Reservoirs in the South Platte Basin are full from spring snows, but the rest of the state's storage pools are dangerously low, and farmers are struggling.

The Los Angeles River’s overlooked anglers

Unhoused Angelenos use the urban river as a source of sustenance, but a proposal to revitalize the waterway could push them out.

In the heart of the San Joaquin Valley, two groundwater sustainability agencies try to...

Agencies in two counties are pursuing different approaches to address overdraft and meet requirements of California’s groundwater law.