Mexicali’s Colorado River Family Album documents what is no more.
Colorado River
Stories that made us green with envy in 2023
A roundup of the articles we wish we’d written ourselves this past year.
Remove dams to fight the climate crisis
Ten reasons bringing down these barriers are key for mitigation and adaptation.
What the fed’s new proposal for management of Colorado River reservoirs means
Lake Powell and Lake Mead remain historically low, but modeling shows risk of crisis levels has lessened over the next three years.
How Green River celebrates its melon farmers
Thousands turn out for Melon Days, but the future looks uncertain.
States opposed tribes’ access to the Colorado River 70 years ago. History is repeating itself.
Records shed new light on states’ vocal opposition in the 1950s to tribes claiming their share of the river.
Staving off a bass invasion
As Lake Powell shrinks, smallmouth bass threaten the Grand Canyon’s native fishes.
Federal court derails proposed Utah oil railroad
Failures to assess risks to Colorado River and ‘numerous NEPA violations’ in project’s impact analysis highlighted.
The case of the Colorado River’s missing water
Researchers are trying to unravel the mystery of snow that falls but never shows up in the river.
How private interests benefit from tribal water settlements
When power players like mining and agriculture are involved, tribal nations, usually the senior-most water-rights holders, often must fight obstruction.
Decades after the Colorado River flooded the Chemehuevi’s land, the tribe still doesn’t have its share
Nearly all of the tribe’s water remains in the river and ends up being used by Southern California cities.
Supreme Court keeps the Navajo Nation waiting for water
The court case was the Nation’s bid to accelerate decades of fruitless negotiations and secure water for its reservation.
How Arizona squeezes tribes for water
A High Country News/ProPublica investigation shows that Arizona goes to unusual lengths in water negotiations to extract restrictive concessions from tribes.
Hay – yes, hay – is sucking the Colorado River dry
Desert farming, wasteful irrigation and the profoundly thirsty crop is bringing the critical river to the brink.
The breakdown on the Colorado River ‘breakthrough’ water deal
The agreement isn’t the sustainable, permanent one that’s necessary.
Atmospheric rivers ease Western drought
Record-breaking rain and snow bring salvation — and destruction — to a drought-parched West.
Utah’s proposed crude oil railway could see an accident every year
Coloradans fight the oil train project, fearing a repeat of East Palestine’s toxic derailment — but in the Colorado River.
Could Arizona’s new governor shift Colorado River politics?
There’s a historic reckoning in the Colorado River Basin — and Katie Hobbs is here to play hard ball.
What happens when an affluent Arizona suburb’s main water supply is cut off?
As the Colorado River crisis worsens, an unregulated housing development faces a reckoning.