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This stretch of the Colorado River near Moab, Utah is currently in extreme drought.

National Weather Service: Dryness defined 2020 in Southwest

Record or near-record dryness across Arizona and the region
This stretch of the Colorado River near Moab, Utah is currently in extreme drought.

Colorado River watershed forecast looks very dry for start of 2021

The Colorado River’s largest reservoirs are likely to drop next year if demands stay the same.
Since late June 2019, Tucson Water has been recharging treated wastewater into the dry channel of the Santa Cruz River, creating a riparian oasis.

Checking in on the health of the Santa Cruz River

Upgrades to the county’s wastewater treatment continue to improve the vitality of the river and the wildlife it supports.
The point on the Santa Cruz River north of downtown where treated effluent from the Agua Dulce flows into the river channel.

State unveils draft legislation to create surface water protections

The process comes after the Trump administration's rollback of Clean Water Act protections.
John Farley, director of fire test operations at the Naval Research Laboratory, tests the effectiveness of aqueous film-forming foam by spraying it on a gasoline fire. The test took place at the laboratory in Chesapeake Beach, Md. Oct. 25, 2019.

State works to clean up chemical pollutants in Tucson water supply

ADEQ is addressing PFAS contamination of Tucson backup groundwater wells.
The 28,000-home master planned community would be built just south of Benson.

Enviro groups win bid for evidence on approval for Vigneto housing development

A judge ordered FWS to produce documents related to political interference that greenlit a huge housing development.
A proposed pipeline project in southern Utah would transport water from Lake Powell to fast-growing communities in the state's southwest corner. The proposal hit political headwinds this year, as other Colorado River users objected to it.

2020 delivers setbacks for some long-planned Western water projects

Long-planned projects have run into roadblocks.
The Santa Cruz River flows downstream of the outflow from the Agua Dulce wastewater treatment plant.

State shares framework for new surface water quality protections

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality is working on regulations to fill the gap left by changes to the Clean Water Act.
Construction nears the end on the wall section across the San Pedro River in October 2020.

DHS marks milestone as wall construction severs wildlife corridors

New border wall construction is nearly done in some of the most environmentally sensitive areas in Arizona.
A meadow along Canyon Creek, Tonto National Forest.

As Western fires burn, focus narrows on forest management. But it’s easier said than done

Correcting the mistakes of the past is tougher than it sounds, as managers work to get ahead of coming wildfires and learn from previous ones.
Eighteen plots are laid out on the hillside on Brian Mealor’s property in Sheridan County, Wyo. Mealor is studying how differing amounts of herbicide sprayed at different times of year can be used to manage invasive species.

In grasslands plagued by invasives and drought, wildfires fuel calls for new solutions

Invasive plants and climate change are changing the relationship between vast rangelands, drought and wildfire.
Between the High Park and Cameron Peak Fires, a broad reach of the Poudre River’s watershed has burned within the last decade.

For the West’s drinking water, wildfire concerns linger long after smoke clears

For municipal drinking water systems, fires are felt for years after they’re snuffed out.
The San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area in Cochise County, Arizona.

Latest lawsuit against Fort Huachuca over San Pedro water use seeks documents

A conservation group has again sued over what it says is a failure to protect the river and its dependent species.
An O'odham demonstrator stands in front of a pickup truck trying to break through a highway blockade the morning of Oct. 5, 2020.

O'odham-led demonstration blocks highway north of Arizona-Sonora border crossing

Demonstrations against border wall construction on ancestral Indigenous land continue despite Quitobaquito closure.
Water in the Rillito River following a monsoon storm. July 23, 2020

After Clean Water Act change, uncertainty reigns over water protections

The Trump administration's revision of which waterways are protected creates regulatory uncertainty, especially in arid places.
The Colorado River near Kremmling, Colorado, on Sept. 15, 2018.

Climate change likely to keep hammering Colorado River's biggest reservoirs, model shows

Projections show an increasing likelihood of official shortage declaration before 2026.

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