U.S. Department of the Interior

The plan from an Australian company, Anson Resources, has sparked concerns about the lithium project's potential water use, especially as the company seeks rights to water from a tributary of the Colorado River.

Hundreds of tribal leaders gathered in Washington this week for an annual summit where the Biden administration is celebrating nearly 200 new agreements to boost cooperation with the tribes.

The U.S. Department of the Interior is throwing its support behind the proposal from the lower basin states to conserve 3 million acre-feet of water through 2026.

Federal officials said Tuesday they will ease water cuts for Western states reliant on the Colorado River next year. Bountiful snowfall and rain last winter pulled much of the region out of drought this spring and raised water levels at key reservoirs.

Michael Brain replaces Tanya Trujillo, who recently resigned after playing a key role in Colorado River negotiations. Agency officials say Brain will help the Interior Department as it addresses drought resilience.

Some Republican members of Congress are criticizing the Biden administration's recent move to withdraw hundreds of square miles of federal land in New Mexico from oil and gas development.

Trujillo has served as assistant secretary for water and science since 2021. She oversees the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and has been involved in talks between the federal government, seven states, Native American tribes and Mexico over how to reduce the reliance on the Colorado River.

On Thursday, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem testified before the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources in favor of a bill that would require the Bureau of Land Management to withdraw the proposal, saying it would cause “deep devastation.”

Many current and former wildland firefighters ask themselves this question: What does all this smoke, dust and ash I’ve been breathing for months on end mean for my health?

More than a century after the U.S. started selling oil leases on public lands, the Biden administration is seeking to let conservationists lease government property to restore it.

The effort is an extension of a tour launched by the Interior Department to hear often traumatic stories from Native Americans, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians who were sent to U.S.-funded boarding schools.

The Interior Department's news analysis considers two different ways to force cuts to Arizona, Nevada and California. The two options mean varying impacts for cities, farms and people living in the Southwest.