Confused about what’s happening on the Klamath? Dams, salmon, irrigation and more.
Bureau of Reclamation
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Colorado River water shortages highlight the urgency of reducing water waste
Conservation, water reuse and better irrigation technology all make more sense than proposed water pipelines.
Posted inAugust 1, 2021: A Mega-Dairy Comes to the Desert
Reviving traditional Apsáalooke water sources
Tribal scientists and community members are testing wells, solving plumbing problems and delivering clean water to their neighbors.
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Climate change sinks Lake Powell, local rec industry
The water line has dropped to historic lows, and house boats are at risk of being marooned.
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On the Klamath River, agricultural interests are pitted against the needs of tribes and endangered species
Due to severe drought, irrigation allotments were decreased to lowest amounts in history.
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How best to share the disappearing Colorado River
Seven Western states must rewrite the rules of the river and cut water use — before they bleed the critical artery dry.
Posted inOctober 29, 2018: When your neighborhood goes BOOM
The precarious plan for the Lake Powell Pipeline
Officials in Utah’s fastest-growing county are obscuring details of what a high-stakes project will cost taxpayers.
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Arizona delays the Colorado River drought agreement
Interests of a few hundred farmers are contributing to postponements in basin-wide plan.
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Why Jon Kyl was chosen to replace John McCain
Amid a reshuffling of Arizona’s political deck, the state’s governor makes a water-driven decision.
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Aspen may stockpile water under its golf course
As climate change looms, towns look to store water without dams.
Posted inJune 11, 2018: Reclaiming the Klamath
Interior revives the push for a higher Shasta Dam
But the state of California and Winnemem Wintu Tribe oppose the project.
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The playground of Lake Powell isn’t worth drowned canyons
Before a writer knew the true cost of Glen Canyon Dam, ‘ignorance was bliss.’
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Oil- and gas-rich counties ask for more federal revenue
A new bill would return money earmarked for Western water projects to mineral-producing counties.
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A new structure for the Interior Department takes shape
A massive shake-up would shed senior staffers and state boundaries. Could it work?
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Interior sends mixed signals on California water project
Without agency approval, the Delta tunnels deal can’t proceed — but conflicting statements make next steps uncertain.
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As sediment builds, one dam faces its comeuppance
Officials at a Colorado reservoir are reckoning with decades of accumulation.
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What is the Bureau of Reclamation?
The Bureau of Reclamation, part of the Interior Department, manages water conservation and delivery, flood control, drought response and rural water projects. It helped Western homesteaders in the early 20th century by providing water to farmers and ranchers through dams, irrigation and reservoirs. Today, it delivers water to one in five farmers in the Western […]
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West Obsessed: On dams and the rebirth of the Elwha
A deep dive into a dismantled dam — and another in the planning stages.
Posted inSeptember 4, 2017: The Elwha, Unleashed
Will Utah dam the Bear River?
The Wasatch Front faces drier times and a growing population, threatening the Great Salt Lake.
Posted inSeptember 4, 2017: The Elwha, Unleashed
Down with the Glen Canyon Dam?
Activists claim that decommissioning the dam will save water and restore a wild canyon. Are they right?