Colorado River Basin

Utah’s Supreme Court has upheld a ruling rejecting a proposal to pipe 55,000 acre-feet of Green River water from Utah to Colorado’s Front Range. The long-debated project, led by Fort Collins developer Aaron Million and Water Horse Resources, would have sent water more than 300 miles across Wyoming. The court agreed with the state engineer’s finding that Water Horse must prove the water would be beneficially used in Colorado before any export can be approved. Conservation groups are calling the decision a major victory for the Colorado River, while Million says the project isn’t over yet.

The Trump administration has named Scott Cameron acting commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation and Andrea Travnicek assistant Interior secretary for water and science—two key roles overseeing the Colorado River amid tense negotiations between Basin states.

This past water year was dry, with not all of the snowpack making it into the basin's rivers and streams. Forecasters will be looking out for conditions driven by climate change and prolonged drought as they consider what Water Year 2026 will bring.

About 65% of the Western U.S. is in drought, with Lake Mead and Lake Powell below one-third full. Experts warn the region may face a deeper water crisis without multiple strong snow seasons.

Drought lingers in the Four Corners as NASA data shows 28 million acre-feet of groundwater lost across the Colorado River Basin since 2002.

Gov. Polis unveiled ColoradoRiver.com, a new hub for river data, maps, and policy updates, at the Colorado Water Congress in Steamboat Springs.

Experts warn the Colorado River Basin may be shifting from drought to long-term aridification, with major implications for water planning in the West.

A new study highlights how dust on snow accelerates snowmelt in the Upper Colorado River Basin, with significant impacts on water resources. Researchers urge better monitoring and land use management.

The Lower Basin states of California, Arizona and Nevada are asking for a fresh look at proposals for sharing the shrinking water supply and changes to Lake Powell and the Glen Canyon Dam.

The controversy over the gray wolf appears to be far from over in the West and in western Colorado, solar energy companies are paying farmers to lease their ground for solar energy production, and some insight into the use of water from the Colorado River for irrigating alfalfa.