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

Well water throughout California contaminated with ‘forever chemicals’

These chemicals are everywhere. They last forever. They’re expensive to get rid of. And many Californians don’t even know they’re drinking them.
water drop wikipedia

What happens when a rural area’s only well is contaminated?

As California’s new requirements for forever chemicals kick in, small providers in remote towns struggle to clean up their water.

Colorado mitigation “bank” to offset wetland damage, meet Clean Water Act rules

A developer who disrupts wetlands or streams can offset that impact by buying credits generated from floodplain and ecosystem restoration.

Pitkin County groups concerned about marble quarry’s impacts on waterways

Local groups are keeping a close eye on a marble-mining company that violated the Clean Water Act with a Yule Creek diversion.

Video: Five years after the Gold King Mine spill

Environmental correspondent Laura Paskus revisits the Gold King Mine spill and the destructive impact of the toxic orange plume that went flowing down the Animas and San Juan rivers five years ago.

Long criticized for inaction at the Salton Sea, California says it’s all-in on effort...

Dust suppression and habitat restoration are key elements in a plan to aid the Salton Sea, whose ills have been a sore point in Colorado River management.

Concern over the “forever chemical” PFAS in water supplies is high, but remedies remain...

A synthetic chemical’s appearance in public water supply wells raises questions of how to protect the public from unknown health hazards.

Praying for rain

The Zuni tribe's homeland is one of the most parched sections of the country. The tribe has already declared three drought emergencies in the last 15 years. Will it survive the next one?

Marble quarry operators violated Clean Water Act, Army Corps of Engineers finds

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has determined that the operators of a marble quarry violated the Clean Water Act when they diverted a tributary of the Crystal River to make way for a mining road.

Quarry in Marble facing scrutiny from federal, state regulators in wake of diesel spill

The operator of Marble’s famed Yule quarry, is facing scrutiny and possible penalties from federal and state regulators after an October diesel spill that shut down operations for nearly two months.