Climate Drought
All Stories
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![A brick wall graffitied with the phrase]()
![A brick wall graffitied with the phrase]()
In Arizona water ruling, the Hopi tribe sees limits on its future
Arizona's unique method for awarding water to tribes was supposed to open up economic possibilities beyond farming for the Hopi Tribe. Instead, the tribe says it has dashed their dreams of building a thriving homeland.
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![A man in black sunglasses and a blue button-down shirt points while standing next ot a canal.]()
![A man in black sunglasses and a blue button-down shirt points while standing next ot a canal.]()
Meet the Colorado River’s newest – and youngest – power player
Appointed as California's top water negotiator, 27-year-old JB Hamby also serves on the board of directors for California's Imperial Irrigation District.
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![Lake Shasta, California's largest dam and water reservoir feeding the Sacramento River, sits at historically low levels in July 2015.]()
![Lake Shasta, California's largest dam and water reservoir feeding the Sacramento River, sits at historically low levels in July 2015.]()
How the Western drought has increased carbon emissions
Hydropower loss added 121 million metric tons of carbon emissions over 20 years — about the same as putting 1.3 million more cars on the road.
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![A red tractor bulldozes through a field of corn.]()
![A red tractor bulldozes through a field of corn.]()
Drought hits the Midwest, threatening crops and the world’s food supply
America's Breadbasket hasn’t had enough rain to sustain crop growth, including food, animal feed, and ethanol production.
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![In the desert, a man in a baseball cap and jeans fills up water from a pump that says]()
![In the desert, a man in a baseball cap and jeans fills up water from a pump that says]()
How Arizona stands between tribes and their water
As it negotiates water rights with tribes, Arizona goes to unique lengths to extract concessions that limit tribes’ opportunities for growth and economic development, according to a ProPublica and High Country News investigation.
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![A man unrolls a rope attached to a metal cylinder in the ground.]()
![A man unrolls a rope attached to a metal cylinder in the ground.]()
Texas farmers are worried one of the state’s most precious water resources is running dry. You should be, too.
The Ogallala Aquifer serves farming communities in multiple states. When it runs dry, the agriculture industry in Texas and the nation is in jeopardy.
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Why is the summer off to such an extreme start?
Blame climate change, El Niño, and a dose of bad luck.
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![Workers pour concrete for the driveway of a new home at a Pulte Homes housing development in Phoenix, Arizona.]()
![Workers pour concrete for the driveway of a new home at a Pulte Homes housing development in Phoenix, Arizona.]()
Can Phoenix grow without groundwater? Only if the price is right.
Arizona has paused new housing construction around the city, citing a water shortage.
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![A dock sits in sand, next to a shallow pool of water in the middle of the desert.]()
![A dock sits in sand, next to a shallow pool of water in the middle of the desert.]()
As the nation’s second-largest reservoir recedes, a once-drowned ecosystem emerges
Lake Powell reached record low levels, revealing a landscape that environmentalists call a "lost national park."
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![An irrigation canal carries water from the Colorado River to irrigate a farm growing leaf lettuce and broccoli near Yuma, Arizona.]()
![An irrigation canal carries water from the Colorado River to irrigate a farm growing leaf lettuce and broccoli near Yuma, Arizona.]()
At last, states reach a Colorado River deal: Pay farmers not to farm
The Biden administration has temporarily resolved a dire water crisis — with help from a wet winter.
