Colorado River Basin

The federal government set a deadline of November 11 for states to have a framework for allocating Colorado River water post-2026. The states missed that deadline, and have failed to produce an agreement.

Scientists have known that dust settling on snowpack speeds up snowmelt, but new research shows that nearly all of the Upper Colorado River Basin has experienced dust on snow events in the last 23 years, making the problem more widespread than initially realized.

Hydrologists say that hotter temperatures have been drying out soils and vegetation in the west, leading to less water flowing to rivers and streams when snow melts.

Disagreement, bickering, and uncertainty defined 2024 for the Southwest's shrinking water supply.

As water levels in Lake Powell keep dropping, activists say Glen Canyon Dam is in need of upgrades to its plumbing so it can keep sending water downstream.

Following a legacy of mining, organizations in Crested Butte keep tabs on water quality. Maintaining healthy waters is critical as the area is a headwaters source of the Colorado River.

More than 150 scientists will research snow and water for two years in the East River watershed near Crested Butte, Colorado. The project tracking weather patterns from ‘atmosphere to bedrock’ is the first of its kind.

The reservoir provides recreation like boating and fishing, powers thousands of homes through hydroelectricity and stores water for Lake Powell and other downstream users. The reservoir is critically low, and it’s possible water levels may be lowered even further in 2022.

A few weeks ago, residents of a mobile home park in Gunnison were without water for most of the day; the three wells that supply water are often unreliable. Those who live in the park have been speaking up for years without result. While some in the valley struggle with reliable water, a few Gunnison residents worked on a new state initiative to address equity in water issues in Colorado.

Prior appropriation is the water law in the West that determines how water is divided among users. Most of the water in the Colorado River Basin is used for agriculture. Increasingly, Colorado is designating rights to streams themselves as rivers and drought continues to shrink water supplies.