1. News
  2. Colorado River

More Colorado River Stories

Visitors take in Colorado River views at Horseshoe Bend outside Page, Arizona.

A Colorado River showdown is looming. Let the posturing begin

The states that draw water from it are about to undertake a new round of negotiations over the river’s future.
The Colorado River flows into the All-American Canal below the Imperial Dam on the California-Arizona border.

In rapidly warming Colorado River Basin, the negotiating table is being set

A new round of talks could define how the river system adapts to a changing climate for the next generation.
This stretch of the Colorado River near Moab, Utah is currently in extreme drought.

Colorado River watershed forecast looks very dry for start of 2021

The Colorado River’s largest reservoirs are likely to drop next year if demands stay the same.
A proposed pipeline project in southern Utah would transport water from Lake Powell to fast-growing communities in the state's southwest corner. The proposal hit political headwinds this year, as other Colorado River users objected to it.

2020 delivers setbacks for some long-planned Western water projects

Long-planned projects have run into roadblocks.
The Colorado River near Kremmling, Colorado, on Sept. 15, 2018.

Climate change likely to keep hammering Colorado River's biggest reservoirs, model shows

Projections show an increasing likelihood of official shortage declaration before 2026.
Scientists have been studying the Colorado River, shown here from above Deer Creek Falls, for nearly four decades to understand the environmental impacts of the Glen Canyon Dam on a water source used by around 40 million people in seven states. The environment, climate change, tribal rights and those water users will all be considered in river-management talks expected to begin later this year.

Humpback chub 'alien abductions' help frame the future of the Colorado River

While not considered very "charismatic," this keystone fish plays an important role in water policy.
The Colorado River flows beneath Cibola Valley's Farmers' Bridge.

Arizona housing growth tees up opportunity for water investors

As Central Arizona booms, Phoenix exurbs are looking to rural areas for more water.
The Colorado River, the source of the Grand Valley’s irrigation water, flows through Debeque Canyon.

Western Colorado water purchases stir up worries about the future of farming

An investment trend based on the potential value of water has rekindled fears about the future of water in the West.
Craig Station, a coal fired power plant in northwest Colorado, is slated to close by 2030.

As Western coal plants close, what happens to their water?

Closures looming, communities are starting to discuss how this newly freed up water should be put to use.
Boulder Basin at Lake Mead.

Planning for a future with less Colorado River water

A new book sheds light on mistakes of the past while Arizona gears up for the next round of negotiations.
Lake Mead outside Las Vegas, Nevada, serves as the Colorado River's largest reservoir and a key water source for Arizona, California, Nevada and Mexico.

Colorado River water forecast lower than normal despite snowpack

The forecast is mostly due to hot and dry weather in the fall that left soils parched across the region.
The Kanab ambersnail was listed as an endagered species for more than 20 years, but federal officials have proposed taking it off the list after determining it is not a species distinct from other, more common ambersnails.

Feds say tiny snail in Utah, Arizona can no longer be listed as endangered

U.S. Fish and Wildlife says the Kanab ambersnail is not actually its own species.
Lake Mead outside of Las Vegas.

Interior secretary announces study impacting Colorado River water talks

States are set to begin negotiations next year over a new set of agreements about the river's future.
Looking out on Boulder Basin, Lake Mead.

Climate change still threatens Colorado River after wet winter

Despite recent wet conditions, states still face a future with increasingly less water for farms and cities.
Gary Turner uses his turf harvester to peel 2-by-5-foot strips grass at his Washington City farm. He says the land and the water rights are so valuable in this fast-growing area that he often gets offers for the property in the heart of Utah redrock country.

Utah presses forward with pipeline plans despite Colorado River Basin constraints

The pipeline would be like dipping a 140-mile straw into Lake Powell halfway across the state.
An Aqua-Modis satellite image of snowpack in the Rockies, image including some of Colorado and Utah, taken June 12, 2019.

Snowmelt fills rivers in US Southwest, easing drought fears

An abundance of snowmelt is rushing into the Colorado River, the Rio Grande and other waterways after a desperately dry 2018.

Selected Archive Filters

Colorado River
Back to Top
Arizona Public Media is a service of the University of Arizona and our broadcast stations are licensed to the Arizona Board of Regents who hold the trademarks for Arizona Public Media and AZPM. We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples.
The University of Arizona