BLOG
How a Saudi firm Tapped a Gusher of Water in Drought-Stricken Arizona
July 17th, 2023
Courtesy of The Washington Post, an article on how lax rules allowed a foreign-owned company to pump water from state land to grow alfalfa for the kingdom’s cattle: A megadrought has seared Arizona, stressing its rivers and reservoirs and reducing water to a trickle in the homes of farmworkers near this desert valley. But green […]
Read more »The Forgotten Sovereigns of the Colorado River
July 16th, 2023
Via Politico, a look at how – as the West’s major river dries up – tribes have asserted rights to its water long ignored by state and federal authorities: If it weren’t for the Colorado River, Albuquerque wouldn’t exist — at least, not as a city of half a million. Which is interesting, because the city […]
Read more »Scientists Warned of a Salton Sea Disaster. No One Listened.
July 9th, 2023
Via Undark, a detailed look at the Salton Sea, a little-known health and environmental tragedy: ON THE AFTERNOON OF Oct. 6, 2022, a massive dust storm rose in the drought-parched Sonoran Desert just southeast of California’s Salton Sea. Wind, gusting at more than 60 miles per hour, whipped the desert floor into a vaulting curtain of […]
Read more »River of Words: First Nations and U.S. Water
July 8th, 2023
Courtesy of Sibley’s Rivers, part one of a detailed look We’re seeing not just being at the table, but actually having an influence on the agenda. We’re looking at the next step – because you can have a seat at the table, but not be taken seriously. And tribes, especially now in regards to water, […]
Read more »In Arizona Water Ruling, the Hopi Tribe Sees Limits on Its Future
July 7th, 2023
Via ProPublica, an article on how 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: In September 2020, the Hopi Tribe’s four-decade effort to secure its right to water […]
Read more »The Colorado River Flooded Chemehuevi Land. Decades Later, the Tribe Still Struggles to Take Its Share of Water.
July 6th, 2023
Via ProPublica, a look at how the Chemehuevi’s reservation fronts about 30 miles of the Colorado River, yet 97% of the tribe’s water stays in the river, much of it used by Southern California cities, but he tribe isn’t paid for it: At night, the lights of Lake Havasu City’s hotels, boat launches and neighborhoods […]
Read more »