water

A recently announced award of $25.6 million to the Southwestern Water Conservation District to mitigate the effects of drought has been put into doubt by an executive order from the Trump administration.

A half-dozen residents of Cortez sharply criticized new water rates in the city during Tuesday’s meeting of the city council.

The Mancos Conservation District is opposing a proposal for exploratory mineral drilling in the La Plata Mountains because of concerns about possible effects on the Mancos watershed and river.

A look into the complexities of water rights, agricultural use, and the continued search for shared solutions in the Colorado River basin as drought conditions continue.

Troubled by the possibility of a new national monument along the Lower Dolores River, county commissioners for both Montezuma and Dolores counties met Tuesday and voiced support for creating a National Conservation Area instead.

Last week, the Colorado Department of Agriculture hosted a virtual town hall on new water regulations from the Food and Drug Administration. The meeting covered new harvest and post-harvest water requirements for farmers across the state, including those in southwest Colorado. And several politically-charged bills are headed to Governor Jared Polis’ desk. Two of them are Democrat-sponsored gun-control measures.

An above average SNOTEL report shows the state’s southwestern river basins are 139% of average for this time of year.

The Montezuma County Board of Commissioners held a public workshop on Monday to discuss plowing and maintenance at Chicken Creek near Mancos. And legislation to create a task force for high-altitude water storage was put on hold Monday afternoon during the state legislature’s Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee hearing.

Two Colorado Republicans who lost their primary races last month are raising unfounded claims of voter fraud and renewing their requests for recounts. And the U.S. house is considering a package of bills related to wildfire and drought this week.

Blue Mesa Reservoir once resembled a deep and healthy lake. But a 22-year drought - coupled with obligations to release water to downstream users - has left the reservoir almost 60 feet below the normal high watermark. Experts say it will take a lot more than one snowy winter to refill the reservoir.