Water

A 2023 Supreme Court ruling, along with new interpretations from the Trump administration, have limited protections for rivers and wetlands. Colorado is looking to fill in that gap with its own regulatory program.

A new approach to addressing water scarcity is underway — one that turns farmland into projects that benefit both people and the environment. Researchers say parched Mountain West states could learn from it.

The project, which would bring fresh water to over 200,000 people, was authorized under the Obama Administration in 2009. The federal government is contributing $2.2 billion to the project.

States that use Colorado River water need to agree on new rules for sharing it by 2026. If they don't, they will likely end up in messy court battles.

In the high desert of rural Taos County, a complex web of irrigation ditches has nourished the region for centuries. But adapting Western water law for a historic, community-led system can create complications.

Utah is using a technology that can add more water to the state's supply. Others in the Colorado River basin are looking to expand.

Residents of Westwater, a small Navajo subdivision in Utah, set their sights on water in the early 2000s. Now, after years of effort, their dream is turning into a reality.

Nonfunctional turf replacement is an important tool in Colorado River water conservation, but even its proponents say it is a small part of the bigger picture.

The Navajo, Hopi, and San Juan Southern Paiute tribes are one step closer to being guaranteed access to some water in the Upper and Lower Colorado River Basin and funding for water infrastructure projects.

The Interior Department is spending another $90 million on restoring rivers and wetlands across the Western U.S., including several in the Mountain West region.