“For river ecosystems to survive dry times, they need their floods — and big, messy floodplains.” reasonstobecheerful.world/letting-a-ri...

The U.S. Supreme Court approved an agreement to resolve interstate litigation over groundwater pumping along the Rio Grande. The settlement includes reduced groundwater pumping and water rights retirements. www.texastribune.org/2026/05/28/t...

“Five straight years of record heat, sporadic rainfall and divided leadership has Corpus Christi in danger of becoming the first U.S. city to run short of water.” @texastribune.org www.texastribune.org/2026/05/29/t...

Happy Pub Day to John Fleck and Robert Berrens, authors of Ribbons of Green: The Rio Grande and the Making of Modern Albuquerque, which explores how Albuquerque built its environment to create a valley floor that its residents have come to adore and how, in a climate-altered world, we might keep it.

In Oklahoma, oil field wastewater has caused an underground pollution crisis for residents and access to clean, safe drinking water. Important investigative reporting from @nickbowlin.bsky.social with @propublica.org & @readfrontier.bsky.social www.propublica.org/article/toxi...

It’s possible for decision makers to hide behind competing narratives because water issues are so complicated. But after 15 years of reporting on water in the Southwest, much of the discussion appears to me as delusional." —  @zakpodmore.bsky.social www.cityweekly.net/news/lake-po...

Roughly 600,000 Californians still lack access to safe and reliable drinking water supplies. The problem will cost billions to fix. So why is the Newsom administration considering a climate overhaul that could gut a key source of funding?

"Between 1998 and 2020, the average cost of water, sewer and trash collection services increased more than twice as much as the overall U.S. consumer price index, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics." www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...

“All of a sudden it looks different, tastes different, there’s odor, there’s color." Important look (in the San Luis Valley) at how groundwater depletion can increase contaminants, threatening drinking water for residents with private wells and few protections. insideclimatenews.org/news/0805202...

The newly released Sierra Nevada Atlas is a collection of maps, geospatial datasets, and associated text that presents geologic map layers, geophysical layers, economic geology layers, neotectonic features, and geochronology for the Sierra Nevada. www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/sierra-n...

Corpus Christi Plans to Declare a ‘Water Emergency.’ What Does That Mean? More from @dylanbaddour.bsky.social insideclimatenews.org/news/2304202...

Arizona groundwater ruling could be 'death knell' for 100-year water supply rule, expert says. Important case to watch as it goes through the appeals process. Good Q&A here from @kjzz.org www.kjzz.org/the-show/202...

Went down to the Colorado River in Grand Junction to see what this very low flow looks like. Plenty of exposed cobble bars. Looking low and slow and what you might expect to see in late summer with heavy diversion upstream. Not the start of spring runoff.

I'm having a hard time believing my eyes with water data this year. The Colorado River mainstem through Grand Junction was flowing at 54 cfs last night. Not a typo. 54 cfs. Last year on this date it was flowing at 1,420cfs. Even in 2002, the driest year on record, it was at 690cfs on April 22.

“These are necessary short-term adjustments, not a long-term fix. Real stability will require conservation across the entire Colorado River Basin.” www.latimes.com/environment/...

The Colorado River—which did not always flow through the Grand Canyon region—may have begun to carve its path through it after an ancient lake overflowed roughly 5.6 million years ago. Learn more this week in Science: https://scim.ag/3QbdtrE

Truckee River friends: A great opportunity to learn about the riparian ecosystem in the Lower Truckee, restoration and flow regimes under the current operating rules. www.dri.edu/truckee_ripa...

Congratulations to @cetracey.bsky.social on publication day for her debut book of essays, "Salt Lakes: An Unnatural History." Wonderful writing, reporting and thought! Highly recommend checking it out🧂 🌊 www.hcn.org/issues/58-3/...

"Attacks on civilian systems, including water systems, must be condemned and punished under the laws of war." | Desalination, water, and war by @petergleick.bsky.social thebulletin.org/2026/03/desa...

Given the latest NOAA CBRFC inflow forecast for Lake Powell, I dusted off this plot from my Twitter days and updated it. The Feb 1st outlook for Colorado River flows hasn't been this poor in >35 years. Even if wetter weather ahead, bottom-10 outcome likely. h/t @glenwoodrek.bsky.social

I wrote about my childhood friend Alexi Pretti. Please read it and share it and remember him as a human being. @theverge.com

Arizona takes action on groundwater overuse And ‘nonfunctional turf’ is taken to court A fascinating read by @danielrothberg.bsky.social — and thanks for flagging the story, Daniel! open.substack.com/pub/invisibl...

"Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs said Monday that her administration is acting to 'crack down on the out-of-state special interests that are pumping our state dry while Arizona families and farmers suffer.'" From @ianjames.bsky.social www.latimes.com/environment/...

The U.S. government released its draft environmental review of options for new Colorado River rules to replace current operating guidelines that expire this year. Sounds dry but very important for a watershed that supports 40 million people in the Southwest. coloradosun.com/2026/01/09/c...

National assessment of river protection in the U.S. Article: doi.org/10.1038/s418... Policy Brief: doi.org/10.1038/s418... Rivers Explorer: map.myriver.americanrivers.org Collaboration b/t American Rivers, Conservation Science Partners, Univ WA @americanrivers.bsky.social Thread 👇 | DM for PDF

"...the ghost of Tulare Lake has much more to teach us than its existence alone. Tulare Lake wasn’t drained because it failed. It was drained because it worked, precisely as nature intended." @andrewrypel.bsky.social writes on America's Ghost Lake tnature.substack.com/p/americas-g...

"The drop (in Lake Powell) is compressing the margin between routine operations and hard infrastructure limits at Glen Canyon Dam as negotiations over post-2026 Colorado River operating rules remain unresolved." www.enr.com/articles/622...

This is so sad on so many levels.

"One of the West’s most valuable resources has no consistent valuation – and sometimes costs nothing at all." | California cities pay a lot for water; some agricultural districts get it for free calmatters.org/environment/...

New report from the Colorado River Research Group: Dancing with Deadpool. It begins: "Conditions on the Colorado River are, to put it bluntly, dire." www.colorado.edu/center/gwc/C...

"Nevada is completely over-allocated on its groundwater resources. It’s the driest state in the union. Our tribe’s number one goal is protecting our resources." | The AI boom is heralding a new gold rush in the American west www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

A new report looks at approaches for updating local ordinances in California to consider the connection between groundwater use and streamflow within the context of SGMA and a 2018 ruling that applied public trust considerations to well permits. www.groundwaterresourcehub.org/content/dam/...

I joined @danielrothberg.bsky.social for the first video edition of his newsletter, Invisible Waters—imo the best resource for staying up to date about what’s going on with water in the West—to talk about my forthcoming book, Salt Lakes: substack.com/@cetracey/no...

‘The precedent is Flint’: How Oregon’s data center boom is supercharging a water crisis thefern.org/2025/11/the-...

Have you been wanting to learn more about Nobel Prize winner Elinor Ostrom's ideas for collaborative governance? Now is your chance to get that copy of The Uncommon Knowledge of Elinor Ostrom for half price! islandpress.org/books/uncomm...

“Litigation could take years, if not decades, to resolve. The effects of aridification are unfolding at a faster rate.” @danielrothberg.bsky.social invisiblewaters.substack.com/p/what-happe...

“Previous negotiations did not address core issues. They either delayed them or worked around them, making do based on the circumstances of the time.” Good piece from Caitlin Ochs on the legal questions behind the Colorado River talks: www.hcn.org/articles/why...

New York Times investigation finds home insurance companies have exploited loopholes in California wildfire regulations to avoid high-risk areas while still charging higher rates: www.nytimes.com/2025/11/01/u...

my latest: CRIT grants personhood status to #coloradoriver - 3rd in North America by Indigenous peoples. www.azcentral.com/story/news/l...

Colorado River talks hit crunch time as deadline from Trump administration looms calmatters.org/environment/...

Do groundwater rights retirement programs work? There is certainly demand for them in Nevada. For KNPR and the Daily Yonder, I talked to irrigators about their experiences with a pilot program in areas where aquifers are being depleted faster than they are replenished. knpr.org/desert-compa...

Exactly a year ago, Ellen Wohl, @parriblue.bsky.social and I spent two days in Providence thinking about #rivers and how we conceptualize them & live with them. Here’s the result of history and fluvial geomorphology teaming up. #envhist doi.org/10.1371/jour...

“Regardless of what sort of offsetting or replenishment you do, it doesn’t necessarily nullify the water footprints of your own operations." Amazon strategised about keeping its datacentres’ full water use secret, leaked document shows www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

Wrote a bit about the mining and (ground)water nexus in the Western U.S., with the rush for critical minerals and gold surpassing $4,000/ounce. invisiblewaters.substack.com/p/where-ther...

Melanie Winter, who dedicated much of her life to reimagining the Los Angeles River as a natural asset, has died. I feel fortunate to have known Melanie and learned about her vision for a living river. She inspired many others, who will carry her vision with them. www.latimes.com/environment/...

Check out (and subscribe!) to @sammyroth.bsky.social's new Substack focused on climate solutions in entertainment and pop culture. "...what I’ve realized — what drove me to start this newsletter — is that the climate crisis is in large part a cultural problem."

Its official! Today, the US Corps Of Engineers is announcing that it signed into effect a Water Control Manual update for Lake Mendocino on the Russian River that implements FIRO* there! 1/7 www.sfchronicle.com/california/a... * Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations

“The Monday filing outlines where 2,050 positions would be eliminated; the U.S. Geological Survey, the Bureau of Land Management, and the main Interior office would be especially hard hit. Regional offices with the National Park Service are also targeted for significant cuts.”

Salmon reach headwaters for first time in a century after California dam removal www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...