Figuring out who absorbs additional water cuts has been contentious, with allegations of drought profiteering, reneging on commitments, too many negotiators in the room and an unsteady hand from the federal government
Water
How Aurora recycles enough wastewater to serve tens of thousands of homes
Feds deliver $5 million expansion money to Aurora’s Prairie Waters project, which they call key to the future of an increasingly dry West
More “forever chemicals” found in Colorado and U.S. freshwater fish, study warns
PFAS levels in locally caught fish are “staggeringly high” according to the Environmental Working Group researchers, and Colorado has no fish consumption guidelines
Drought has eased in Colorado, but experts brace for what the 2023 snow season holds in store
Precipitation and snowpack are above average, but midway through winter, meteorologists are cautiously optimistic about how much moisture Colorado could see this year
New Mexico allocates grants from $32M Gold King mine spill settlement
The cities of Aztec and Farmington in San Juan County, the San Juan Soil and Water Conservation District, the state tourism department and the New Mexico State University Extension Service will all receive six-figure grants
Is the water in Grand Lake too murky?
A local advocacy group has renewed longstanding questions about how pumping water from Grand County to the Front Range disrupts Colorado’s largest and deepest natural lake
More questions than answers surface at Colorado River water meetings
Data showing less water flows into the river than is drawn from it has dominated talks this week, and the annual conference in Las Vegas has taken on a crisis vibe
How to heat Denver’s buildings with sewage. And no, it doesn’t smell.
National Western Center and Colorado State University Spur campus exchange effluent heat to clean water pipes for a low-carbon, renewable flow.
There’s a crappy situation in Colorado’s backcountry: too many pooping hikers
Outdoor recreation groups hope handing out poop-disposal kits will cut down on the problem piling up on Colorado’s public lands
Colorado River water users convene in Las Vegas amid crisis concerns
The Colorado River Water Users Association conference, normally a largely academic three-day affair, comes at a time of growing concern about the river’s future after more than two decades of record drought attributed to climate change