Water

Federal data show Lake Mead fell Friday to a level just below the prior record low set in July 2022. The record comes after the worst snowpack on record for the Colorado River Basin.

In an email obtained by The Associated Press, the Bureau of Reclamation told various groups that water from Glen Canyon Dam in northern Arizona would not be released “due to significant hydropower generation concerns under already strained system conditions.”

A new commissioner and a new agriculture water leasing initiative could be the answer to bringing the Great Salt Lake out of its disastrous state.

Trout need cool water to survive. But record heat this summer has driven water temperatures to levels that can kill fish. Wildlife officials are responding by banning fishing during certain hours on rivers and streams across the U.S. West.

The Department of the Interior's final Environmental Impact Statement comes after years of stalled negotiations. What you think of it depends on which groups of states you stand with: The Upper Basin or the Lower Basin.

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation proposal announced Friday spares Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming from facing mandatory water cuts — for now.

The Sackett v. EPA ruling left many wetlands in streams vulnerable in the West, where waters can run dry for portions of the year but are still important for the overall ecosystem.

The combination of the worst snowpack on record and fast-spreading wildfires is changing the job description for ranchers in the Rocky Mountains.

Federal wildlife officials downlisted the razorback sucker to threatened status, but its life is still difficult.

Overuse, drought and climate change have pummeled the lake fed by the imperiled Colorado River to near historic lows, made worse by the driest winter on record and extreme heat. Even so, businesses on the lake say there's still plenty of water to recreate.

The combined amount of water in Lake Powell and Lake Mead is now the lowest it has been in nearly 70 years.

Environmental advocates argue that new water-sharing rules can and should keep the river flowing for plants, animals, people and infrastructure.