A new six-part podcast explores the questions, challenges and possible solutions to saving the 1,450 mile long lifeline of the West The Colorado River.
Lake Powell is a boater’s dream. The nation’s second largest reservoir on the Colorado River is a maze of sandstone canyons teeming with houseboats. But climate change and unchecked demand for water sent the lake’s levels to a new record low this year. In this episode we explore changes to recreation in this popular vacation hotspot.
The Colorado River’s current crisis traces its roots back to 1922. That’s when leaders from the rapidly-growing southwestern states that rely on the river traveled to a swanky Santa Fe mountain retreat to divvy up the river’s water. Growing populations in some of the West’s burgeoning cities and sprawling farmlands, and the anxieties tied to that growth, pushed leaders to the negotiating table. The Colorado River Compact was the result of those talks. This attempt to manage the dynamic river system was fraught from the very beginning. To get a deal passed the men overestimated the river’s flow, and ignored warnings from scientists they were setting the stage for a sprawling plumbing system bound to be short on water. Today we’re still grappling with the decisions made during those negotiations. This episode features an interview with Eric Kuhn, former Colorado River District general manager, and co-author of Science Be Dammed, How Ignoring Inconvenient Science Drained The C