Colorado River

A bill that would provide state tax rebates to draw data centers to Colorado has run into opposition from critics who warn of the facilities’ large demands for energy and water and potentially higher costs for other electric customers. The legislation would offer state sales and use tax rebates for construction materials and equipment starting in 2026. Senate Bill 24-085 declares that investing in projects such as data centers “is crucial for the economy of the future” and Colorado, considered a growing high-tech hub, is…

T he river churns a muddy brown as it carries us through towering vermilion rock walls toward the roar of Gypsum Canyon Rapid. The sound of water breaking over boulders grows louder as we approach, but Mike DeHoff shows no fear at the coming chaos. Rather, as he works the oars of his 18-foot raft, full of a week’s worth of camping gear and science equipment, it’s clear that he is, instead, thrilled. DeHoff is a local from Moab, Utah, and he’s rowed this stretch of the Colorado River, called Cataract Canyon in…

On a sunny day in late September, Todd Olander was out in the fields of a 90-acre farm in Berthoud planting rows of barley. Typically, Olander would let the soil rest through the winter months, but in recent years he’s begun experimenting with new varieties of barley that have been specifically adapted to withstand cold temperatures. Growing in the winter means the crops will absorb precipitation through the spring, a vital advantage as weather in the Western U.S. continues to get hotter and drier. As the proprietor of…

This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here.The Mississippi River is Drying Out | Extreme EarthAfter a year of intense negotiations, the states along the Colorado River have reached a deal to solve one of the most complex water crises in U.S. history. The solution to this byzantine conundrum is deceptive in its simplicity: pay farmers — who collectively use 80 percent of Colorado River deliveries — to give up their water.Representatives from Arizona, Nevada, and California…

A dead fish sits in shallow water on the banks of Lake Mead near the Lake Mead Marina on August 19, 2022 in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada. Photo: Justin Sullivan (Getty Images)Human remains unveiled in Lake Mead’s low water levels last year have finally been identified as a Las Vegas man who went missing years ago, local authorities said this week.Yet Another Storm in California | Extreme EarthThe Clark County coroner’s office identified Claude Russell Pensinger, who was 52 when he died. He went missing in…

After already having their pool sizes reduced in Las Vegas, Nevada residents may be facing some new water rules: getting their taps turned off if they use too much water. A new bill introduced in the state Assembly last month would allow the Southern Nevada Water Authority to limit how much water its customers in the Las Vegas metropolitan area can use in the event of the federal government deems the Colorado River too low.Assembly Bill 220, sponsored by Democrat Assemblyman Howard Watts, dictates that residents will only…

The Southwest’s water crisis has reached a new, desperate benchmark. For the first time, more than 500 households in Maricopa County, Arizona have had their water cut-off. Since January 1, residents of the Scottsdale, Arizona suburb, Rio Verde Foothills, have been without any reliable water supply. The secluded, unincorporated community—built like a boom town in the middle of the desert— was constructed without its own municipal water source. The oversight was made possible via a plot size loophole that flouts Arizona’s…

A bleached ‘bathtub ring’ is visible on the banks of Lake Mead near the Hoover Dam on August 19, 2022 in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Arizona.Photo: Justin Sullivan (Getty Images)Angely Mercado covers climate change for Gizmodo. She has written stories about the megadrought in the American West, how California celebrities guzzled water in 2022, and reports of mass tree deaths. She hopes to write more positive climate news in 2023. The top story:Don’t be fooled by the massive storms and floods hitting California…

A bleached ‘bathtub ring’ is visible on the banks of Lake Mead on August 19, 2022 in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada.Photo: Justin Sullivan (Getty Images)In an effort to avoid drawing more water from the drought-stricken Colorado River, Arizona officials are looking as far as Mexico for reliable water supply. Arizona’s Water Infrastructure Finance Authority passed a non-binding resolution this week in support of a large desalination plant in Mexico’s Sea of Cortez, Arizona Central reported. The idea was…

Boats are seen in low water at the Antelope Point Marina in Lake Powell on the Colorado River in Page, Arizona, on September 4, 2022. - More than two decades of severe drought have left the Colorado River and its second-largest reservoir, Lake Powell, at critical levels, as climate change leads to increased heat and decreased precipitation.Photo: ROBYN BECK/AFP (Getty Images)A group of agencies that provide water to millions of customers in the western U.S. has agreed to rip-up grass lawns in public spaces across…