Colorado River Basin

Recent rain won’t change Denver, Aurora water restrictions

The recent spring rain across metro Denver helps turn yards and parks temporarily greener, but it won鈥檛 make up for the record deficits driving extreme drought conditions that have forced utilities to restrict irrigation.

David Weiland walked through downtown Denver in light rain on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)

Rocky Mountain bee plants have replaced thirsty turf grass on four medians along Quebec Street in northeast Denver, just south of I-70, saving millions of gallons of water. (Provided by Denver Water)

Don’t call it xeriscaping: New tips and terms have evolved for low-water yards

3 weeks ago

Members of the Cherry Creek Schools Board of Education, from left, Terry Bates, Mike Hamrick, President Anne Egan, Angela Garland and John-Claude Futrell, listen to a literacy data update during a study session inside the district's Educational Service Center on Feb. 6, 2026, in Greenwood Village, Colorado. (Photo By Kathryn Scott/Special to The Denver Post)

Gross salaries and spending in Cherry Creek school district (Letters)

3 weeks ago

Dry lakebed is exposed near Indian Peaks Marina during low water levels at Lake Granby on April 7, 2026, near Granby, Colorado. Lake Granby, a reservoir in the upper Colorado River system, is fed by the Colorado River. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

Critics question feds鈥� plans for future of Colorado River: In years of severe drought, 鈥榯he system is failing鈥�

By Elise Schmelzer

April 19, 2026 at 5:11 p.m.

"We're not looking at an incremental step here," said Brad Udall of Colorado State University....

Carl Musso Jr. plants Pueblo green chile seed at Musso Farms in Pueblo on Thursday, April 16, 2026. (Photo by Harmon Dobson/The Denver Post)

Colorado farmers scale back crops and fear for survival as drought, tariffs and war take their toll

By Bruce Finley

April 19, 2026 at 6:00 a.m.

鈥淚f we don鈥檛 get moisture, I鈥檓 not going to plant,鈥� said chile grower Praxie Vigil,...

The Gunnison River flows into Blue Mesa Reservoir on March 25, 2026, near Gunnison. Low snowpack in the area is adding to drought concerns across the Colorado River Basin. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

Low snowpack offers alarming glimpse of future water rhythms in the West (抖阴ap)

By Imtiaz Rangwala

April 8, 2026 at 12:09 p.m.

As global temperatures rise, the freezing line where precipitation changes from rain to snow moves...

Low water levels are visible at Blue Mesa Reservoir on March 25, 2026, near Gunnison. The reservoir, fed by the Gunnison River, is part of the Colorado River Basin鈥檚 water storage system. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

What does drought look like? How record-low snowpack is hitting southwestern Colorado

By RJ Sangosti

April 5, 2026 at 6:00 a.m.

Colorado is experiencing its worst snowpack levels since statewide record keeping began in 1941, with...

Aspen Skiing Co. snowmaker Travis McFlynn adjusts a snow gun at the top of the X Games terrain park on Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen, Colorado, on Friday, January 9, 2026. (Photo by Kelsey Brunner/Special to The Denver Post)

Colorado’s mountains are likely already at peak snowpack. Now the heat dome will kick off melting.

By Elise Schmelzer

March 19, 2026 at 9:08 a.m.

"We have very little winter left," hydrologist Brian Domonkos said. "There's essentially no chance for...

With little snow covering the mountain backdrop, a lone golfer putts out on a green on the Broken Tee Golf Course, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, in Sheridan, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

As abysmal snowpack rapidly melts in Colorado, drought may be too hopeful a term (抖阴ap)

By Jonathan Thompson

March 18, 2026 at 5:01 a.m.

We are two and a half decades into the Southwest抖阴ap most severe drought of the...

A "bathtub ring," seen above the waterline around Lake Powell, was created during drought that reduced the flow of the Colorado River on April 15, 2023, in Lake Powell, Utah. The flight for aerial photography was provided by LightHawk. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

Colorado River may deliver just a third of normal water supplies this spring, projections show

By Elise Schmelzer

March 9, 2026 at 4:04 p.m.

Extended warm weather across the Colorado River basin could reduce the amount of water delivered...

Colorado River water flows through a canal supplying irrigation to farms in Loma, Colorado, on Oct. 1, 2025. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

Federal officials pursue own Colorado River management plans as states try to overcome impasse

By Elise Schmelzer

January 16, 2026 at 10:21 a.m.

"I don't think anything in here was new to (states' negotiators), so this doesn't necessarily...

The Colorado River flows downhill near Dotsero, Colorado on Sept. 30, 2025. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post)

We need courage to change course on the Colorado River (抖阴ap)

By Chris Winter

November 22, 2025 at 5:01 a.m.

The Colorado River is in crisis. The seven basin states just blew through a heavily...

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