Utah grapples with its future of industry around its dying inland sea.
Rivers & Lakes
Posted inArticles
Another gunky, toxic season for Utah waters
Harmful algae blooms, fueled by warming temperatures and nutrient runoff, plague the state.
Posted inNovember 1, 2023: November 1, 2023
California’s Central Valley chinook are getting lost on their way home
The culprit is a tactic designed to save them – one that could decrease the species’ resilience in the long run.
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What the fed’s new proposal for management of Colorado River reservoirs means
Lake Powell and Lake Mead remain historically low, but modeling shows risk of crisis levels has lessened over the next three years.
Posted inOctober 2, 2023: The Dark Side of the Sheepherding Industry
Short-lived or shallow, it’s still water
Notes on what is fluid and flowing, even if ephemeral.
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Public-land recreation management near Moab gets an overhaul
BLM releases new high-profile travel plan for Labyrinth Canyon area.
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An Alaska expedition uncovers new details about dinosaurs of the Far North
A trio of scientists spent weeks on the Yukon River to learn more about the habitat and landscape where ancient dinosaurs once roamed.
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Environmental groups sue Utah over crisis at the Great Salt Lake
Plaintiffs invoke the public trust doctrine to restore the lake to a healthy level.
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Colorado Supreme Court drowns public access to riverbeds
Roger Hill’s landmark lawsuit fizzled out in court. What happens now?
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The Supreme Court just made it easier to destroy wetlands and streams
The decision strips federal protections from the ephemeral streams that are crucial for life in the arid West.
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This year’s record-breaking snowpack is pouring into the dried-out Salt Lake
Snowmelt is replenishing depleted ecosystems and flooding communities.
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Can the Dolores River be saved?
A beleaguered Colorado waterway garners new attention.
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The Salinas River and the foretold flood
Agriculture beat the river into submission. It’s back.
Posted inFebruary 1, 2023: The Reveal
LDS environmentalists want their institution to address the Great Salt Lake’s collapse
Advocates call for healing the rift between scripture and politics.
Posted inMarch 1, 2023: Moving Parts
Here’s what it takes to build Alaska’s highways of ice
Frozen rivers are vital transportation routes for communities outside the state’s traditional road system.
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The West’s salt lakes are turning to dust. Can Congress help?
A new research and monitoring program aims to conserve threatened but overlooked saline ecosystems.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2023: Ripple Effects
Can dam removal save the Snake River?
See the river as the climate changes, development continues and consequences grow with inaction.
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How the West’s public lands fared in 2022
It was a bad year for dams and a good one for ‘green’ metals.
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Did salmon actually use the Skagit River before the Seattle dams were built?
The public utility’s license renewal to operate the dams centers on the answer to this question.
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The Klamath dams are coming down
Today, FERC ordered PacifiCorp to surrender the dam license, the final hurdle after 20 years of studies and advocacy.