Western water

Lake Mead.

Feds’ cash stream supports Colorado River conservation — but the money will dry up

BY: - September 20, 2023

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. Despite a megadrought, states in the West have been able to avoid drastic cuts to their allocations of Colorado River water this year not only because of surprising storms but also thanks to generous financial incentives from […]

A roundabout in Tucson, Ariz.

These cities coordinate to save water, a model for parched Western areas

BY: - July 25, 2023

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. TUCSON, Ariz. — There are no lush green lawns among the rows of single-family homes that line a quiet boulevard a mile west of the University of Arizona campus. Instead, small lizards scurry across gravel to the […]

Judge OKs states’ plan to end Rio Grande dispute

BY: - July 11, 2023

Last week, a federal judge gave his stamp of approval on a proposed settlement to end a lawsuit between Texas and New Mexico over Rio Grande water. The move potentially ends a decade of litigation in the nation’s highest court with barely a splash. U.S. 8th Circuit Judge Michael Melloy — overseeing the case as […]

Lake Mead, one of the West's primary sources of water.

Colorado River agreement punts on drastic cuts and difficult negotiations

BY: - May 24, 2023

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. State and federal officials are celebrating an agreement reached this week by Arizona, California and Nevada to reduce their use of Colorado River water by millions of gallons over the next three years. But it’s a temporary […]

Wildflowers in San Diego, Calif.

Even after a wet winter, California is preparing for the next drought

BY: - May 15, 2023

SAN DIEGO — Mountains are capped with record snowpack, rolling hills are covered in a rainbow of wildflowers, reservoirs are filled to the brim, and rivers are rushing with snowmelt. A vast majority of California is finally out of drought this month, after a punishing multiyear period of severe aridity that forced statewide water cuts […]

Facing Drought, Western States Seek to Deny Groundwater to Foreigners

BY: - March 15, 2023

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. Just off an arid stretch of highway in western Arizona, a Saudi dairy company pumps unrestricted amounts of groundwater from underneath its fields, uses it to grow thousands of acres of alfalfa and ships the bales of […]

Can Western States Agree on the Future of the Colorado River?

BY: - February 16, 2023

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Western state water officials will spend the next few months trying to agree on how to divvy up water from the Colorado River, which sustains a region of 40 million people across seven […]

Planning for Dry Times: The West Considers More Reservoirs and Aquifers

BY: - December 16, 2022

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. SAN DIEGO, Calif. — As parched California receives much needed rain and snow this winter, some local water officials are calling on state leaders to invest in new infrastructure projects that will store freshwater for inevitable dry […]

Water Cuts Hit Western States

BY: - September 15, 2022

Read more Stateline coverage of how communities across the West are grappling with drought that’s worsening because of climate change. As much of the West remains in extreme drought and reservoirs drop to historic lows, states are facing continued cuts to their water supply, either voluntarily or by direction of the federal government. Last month, federal authorities […]

Western Water

BY: - September 9, 2022

View the full series.

Searing Heat Spotlights West’s Long-Term Water Woes

BY: - August 1, 2022

HAYS COUNTY, Texas — Located near the resort community of Wimberly, just 45 miles southwest of Austin, Jacob’s Well has earned a near-legendary reputation as one of the most popular swimming holes in the Central Texas Hill Country. Hundreds come to the artesian spring each summer to dip into blue-green waters that flow from an […]

Feds Will Cut States’ Access to Colorado River Water

BY: - June 15, 2022

Top federal water officials are warning Western states that there will be cuts to their access to Colorado River water next year. With most of the West in severe drought, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Calimlim Touton told a U.S. Senate panel this week that cuts are going to be necessary for the water system […]