Water is life. Knowledge is power.
Photo: The Rocky Mountains rise behind the Denver skyline. Charlie Riedel/AP
As with so many towns in the West, the history of Westminster, Colorado, can be told through its water supply.
The turning point in that history was the hot, dry summer of 1962. Westminster was already embroiled … [more…]
If you live in the developed world, safe water is usually just a faucet-turn away. And yet, global warming, drought conditions, and population growth in coming decades could change that, ushering in an era of uncertain access to water.
Now an MIT-based research team has evaluated those potential problems and, based on a case study in Australia, suggested an alternate approach to water planning. In a new paper, the researchers … [more…]
Photo: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
Wyoming wants to modify the Fontenelle Dam so it can use an extra 80,000 acre-feet of water from a tributary of the once-mighty Colorado River. At its headwaters, Denver Water hopes to expand a reservoir’s capacity by 77,000 acre-feet of water. And several hundred miles south, Utah is trying to build a pipeline that can funnel another 86,000 acre-feet out of the river.
There … [more…]
Photo: A canal diverts water from the Colorado River to farms in Palisade, Colorado. Ted Wood
From the air, the Grand Valley Water Users Association canal — 10 … [more…]
Photo: Aerial view of snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains. Credit: NOAA
Last week marked the first time since December 2011 that California has been free of drought conditions, breaking a 376-week streak.
Only some reservoirs in the far northern edge of the state, along the Oregon … [more…]