Years of drought planning between the seven Western states that rely on the overtaxed, climate-withered Colorado River comes down to Arizona lawmakers in the next two-and-half weeks. With a federal deadline of Jan. 31 for the states to forge a collaborative Drought Contingency Plan, Arizona remains the lone holdout. The plans for each of the […]
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Colorado, desperate for snow, explores new takes on the old idea of cloud seeding
Cloud-seeding machines strategically positioned in Colorado’s high country have been aimed at the sky for four decades, spewing a compound called silver iodide into the clouds to try to make it snow. Skeptics have been plenty and definitive research was elusive — it’s hard to prove exactly how much more snow falls after clouds are […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Water
Colorado, southwestern U.S. states now have a Jan. 31 deadline for drought deal
By Ken Ritter, The Associated Press LAS VEGAS — The head of the federal agency controlling the Colorado River said Thursday the U.S. government will impose unprecedented restrictions on water supplies to the seven Southwestern U.S. states that depend on the river unless everyone agrees by Jan. 31 on a plan to deal with an expected […]
Posted inEnvironment, Growth, News, Politics and Government, Water
“We all know the clock is ticking”: Colorado, other western states to meet at deadline on Colorado River drought plan
By Ken Ritter, The Associated Press LAS VEGAS — With drought entering a second decade and reservoirs continuing to shrink, seven Southwestern U.S. states that depend on the overtaxed Colorado River for crop irrigation and drinking water had been expected to ink a crucial share-the-pain contingency plan by the end of 2018. They’re not going to […]
Posted inColoradans, Environment, News, Water
Drought has revealed for the first time a Colorado town flooded to build a reservoir. And scientists expect to see it again.
CURECANTI NATIONAL RECREATION AREA — It can feel a bit eerie standing on the bottom of Colorado’s largest body of water. Particularly if you are Bob Robbins. Robbins grew up here, although all that’s left of his hometown of Iola, a town west of Gunnison inundated by the waters of Blue Mesa Reservoir in the […]
Posted inColoradans, Environment, News, Outdoors, Water
The fierce fight over an artesian spring in southern Colorado provides a glimpse of coming water wars
TELLER COUNTY — Until Colorado water authorities announced a plan to cap it and locals started a petition drive to save it, the little spring at Gillette Flats never inspired much reflection. No one knows when someone first stuck a pipe in the ground to tap the water burbling up a few miles north of […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Water
All of this snow is great, but it will likely be months before we know the impact on Colorado’s drought
You’re seeing the pictures of deep snow being surfed by skiers and snowboarders across the state. The Colorado Department of Transportation is working double time to keep high country stretches of highways passable. But if you were expecting an overnight solution to Colorado’s drought, which has been particularly acute in the southwest part of the […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Water
Colorado’s snow season is starting off strong. These satellite photos tell the story.
Colorado’s snow season is starting off strong, giving the state’s drought-parched agricultural industry high hopes for a quenching runoff come spring. “Definitely been a good start here,” said Russell Danielson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boulder. “Overall, the state has seen pretty healthy precipitation, snowpack so far this fall.” Compared with last […]
Posted inEnvironment, Growth, Health, News, Water
Aurora officials say water in Colorado is increasingly difficult to find. So they’ve tapped an inactive mine.
A Denver suburb has finalized an unusual deal to acquire water from an inactive gold mine. Aurora city officials said Friday the $34 million deal gives the city the rights to about 1,400 acre-feet of water a year from the London Mine outside Alma, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) to the west. An acre-foot is […]
Posted inEnvironment, News, Water
Colorado’s drought persists, with abnormally dry conditions covering 83 percent of the state
Colorado’s drought is persisting, with about 83 percent of the state listed under some level of abnormally dry conditions and a growing area of severe and extreme aridity. A U.S. Drought Monitor Report released Thursday shows no significant improvement in drought conditions across Colorado dating back to Oct. 9. Although the percentage of the state […]