Climate Drought
All Stories
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![Glen Canyon Dam holds back water to create the Lake Powell reservoir. The dam divides the river's Upper Basin from its Lower Basin.]()
![Glen Canyon Dam holds back water to create the Lake Powell reservoir. The dam divides the river's Upper Basin from its Lower Basin.]()
States and tribes scramble to reach Colorado River deals before election
Landmark agreements would cut big states’ water usage for decades and deliver water to the Navajo Nation.
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![An aerial view of highways cutting through snowy land and a river running through them.]()
![An aerial view of highways cutting through snowy land and a river running through them.]()
In $100 million Colorado River deal, water and power collide
The Colorado River District plans to buy the water rights that flow through Colorado's Shoshone hydropower plant. The acquisition is seen as pivotal for a wide swath of the state, and has been co-signed by farmers, environmental groups, and local governments.
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![Driftwood logs sit along the shoreline of Upper Klamath Lake]()
![Driftwood logs sit along the shoreline of Upper Klamath Lake]()
As the Klamath River dries, tribal nations and farmers come to rare agreement
“What’s at stake is our very livelihood, our culture, our identities, our way of life."
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Intensifying atmospheric rivers are leading to a surge in Valley fever cases in California
The fungal pathogen is thriving as the Golden State bounces between drought and flooding.
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![An aerial view of a mining pit next to a town.]()
![An aerial view of a mining pit next to a town.]()
Is the Southwest too dry for a mining boom?
Critical minerals for the clean energy transition are abundant in the Southwest, but the dozens of mines proposed to access them will require vast sums of water, something in short supply in the desert.
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![An aerial view of the Central Avra Valley Storage and Recovery Project, an aquifer recharge project that has helped restore Tucson's depleted groundwater.]()
![An aerial view of the Central Avra Valley Storage and Recovery Project, an aquifer recharge project that has helped restore Tucson's depleted groundwater.]()
Groundwater levels are falling worldwide — but there are solutions
New research shows how to protect the aquifers that hold most of the world’s fresh water.
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![An aerial view of homes under construction in Buckeye, Arizona, outside of Phoenix. The state government paused new housing construction in the area last year over concerns about water availability.]()
![An aerial view of homes under construction in Buckeye, Arizona, outside of Phoenix. The state government paused new housing construction in the area last year over concerns about water availability.]()
Will Arizona close a loophole that lets developers build without water?
Despite water woes in “wildcat” neighborhoods, lawmakers may not act.
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How can California solve its water woes? By flooding its best farmland.
Restored floodplains in the state’s agricultural heartland are fighting both flooding and drought. But their fate rests with California’s powerful farmers.
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![Residents and volunteers work to salvage possessions among the rubble of homes in the aftermath of a tornado that struck Rolling Fork, Mississippi on March 24, 2023.]()
![Residents and volunteers work to salvage possessions among the rubble of homes in the aftermath of a tornado that struck Rolling Fork, Mississippi on March 24, 2023.]()
Extreme weather cost $80 billion this year. The true price is far higher.
The U.S. saw 25 billion-dollar weather disasters this year — more than ever before. Next year could be worse.
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![Illustrated portrait of a white man in his 70s (Peter Martin) with an orange map of Maui and black palm trees in the background]()
![Illustrated portrait of a white man in his 70s (Peter Martin) with an orange map of Maui and black palm trees in the background]()
The libertarian developer looming over West Maui’s water conflict
Peter Martin spent decades guzzling water around Lāhainā. Then came the fire.
