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Alan Salazar is a perfect choice for interim CEO at Denver Water,, given his long and impressive history serving in senior leadership positions at the local, state and federal levels — making Colorado better. Denver Water has been a leader in protecting public health and the environment under the leadership of Jim Lochhead and we congratulate Jim on his retirement. The agency’s Lead Reduction Program is a national model, which takes an innovative and proactive approach to replacing all lead service lines at no cost to homeowners. In addition, they are leaders in conserving water in the arid and climate-change impacted West and play a key role in the health of the Colorado River and its tributaries.

Last week Governor Hobbs and the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) released a new analysis of groundwater in the Phoenix metro area. News broke around the country with headlines questioning the viability of future development in the region. But, what does this new analysis actually mean for Arizona? Let’s dive in.  What does this …

A new website from EDF, American Rivers, and Four Corners Mapping provides a special look at the Grand Canyon through an educational, interactive journey. The interactive tool invites people to take a tour through the Grand Canyon and learn how the complexities of the Colorado River crisis impact the Grand Canyon and its surrounding communities …

Website from EDF and partners provides a special look at the Grand Canyon through an educational, interactive journey. Take a tour through the Grand Canyon and learn how the complexities of the Colorado River crisis impact the Grand Canyon and its surrounding communities and ecosystems through words, images, and short videos.

This blog is co-authored by Rachel O’Connor, Manager, Climate Resilient Water Systems. As Arizona’s water crisis worsens due to extreme drought and overuse, more attention than ever is being directed toward addressing this critical issue. At the federal level, an influx of funding has become available through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act.

This blog is co-authored by Sue Ruiz (Education Manager, Self-Help Enterprises), Chris Freimund (Director of Development, Watershed Progressive), and Laura Dubin, Rural Community Assistance Corporation During a rainy Saturday in Visalia, graduates from the Water Leadership Institute (WLI) gathered for an alumni reunion. It only seemed fitting that alumni congregated to discuss solutions to water …

Most of California’s Central Valley is dedicated to productive and diverse farmland, helping make California the country’s fruit, nut, and vegetable basket. However, due in part to increasingly intense and variable climate conditions, we must manage agricultural landscapes to ensure productivity and reliance for future generations.  The 2,100-acre Dos Rios Ranch Preserve near Modesto is …

This storytelling experience from EDF features interviews with more than a dozen residents and experts, historic images and contemporary photos, maps and scientific diagrams, and an extensive narrative laying out the springs’ past and present — as well as the critical collaborative efforts of researchers, landowners, and local community who are working to protect its future.

This blog is co-authored by Dan Mueller, Senior Manager, Climate Resilient Water Systems, Environmental Defense Fund San Solomon Springs is a Texas icon. It’s also a beacon of both caution and opportunity in sustaining Texas’s groundwater resources and the springs and streams that depend on them. The springs — located in the Chihuahuan Desert, near …

New research from Environmental Defense Fund provides a high-level overview of how four technology fields can be valuable tools in agricultural operations and contribute to agroecological goals.

Water in underground aquifers is one of Texas’ most vital natural resources. It provides approximately 55 % of the water used in the state, from agriculture to industry to cities. Outflows from aquifers sustain an average of 30% of the water flowing in streams and rivers that support additional water uses, fish and wildlife, and recreation.

Yesterday, California’s Department of Conservation opened a second application round for the state’s timely and in-demand Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program (MLRP). Now through March 29th, Groundwater Sustainability Agencies and their local non-profit and public agency partners can apply for nearly $9 million block grants to plan for and implement projects that reduce regional groundwater demand …

White House Summit on Lead Pipes brings mayors, water utilities, and lead experts, including EDF's Senior Director for Safer Chemicals, Tom Neltner, to discuss accelerating replacement of lead water pipes and prioritizing those efforts for communities with the greatest health burdens.

Texas’ process for protecting its groundwater resources is fundamentally flawed — lacking critical funding, science, and planning tools, failing to safeguard future groundwater supplies, and endangering both the water security of Texas communities and the property rights of landowners. Those are the key findings of a new report released today by the Environmental Defense Fund. The report takes an unprecedented, holistic look at the constraints that are limiting groundwater planning in Texas and undermining vital water supplies that current and future generations of Texans are counting on.

This report explains the process by which Texas Groundwater Conservation Districts (GCDs) have executed their statutorily required planning function to arrive at a Desired Future Condition (DFC) and the inextricable link that exists between DFC development and state water planning.

The Colorado legislative session has begun at a key time for water in Colorado and the west. Though we’re off to a solid snow year, the Colorado River is crashing and the prolonged drought we’re in requires improvements to how we manage water. Fortunately, both Speaker McCluskie and Senate President Fenberg have prioritized water for their chambers. And …

“Protect our groundwater rights and Texas aquifers.” That was the rallying cry for a group of landowners at a key Texas Senate committee meeting last November on the potential danger of a massive Central Texas groundwater export project. The landowners depend on groundwater from the Carrizo Wilcox Aquifer, which encompasses the Carrizo and underlying Simsboro …

EDF’s Executive Vice President for Impact, Angela Churie Kallhauge, reflects on the outcomes of the annual United Nations climate conference.

Amid music, laughter and a few tears, the latest cohort in EDF and Rural Community Assistance Corporation’s Water Leadership Institute graduated Saturday, enthusiastically committing to put their learnings into practice and tackle significant water challenges in their communities.

Roya Alkafaji, Manager, Healthy Communities and Lindsay McCormick, Senior Manager, Safer Chemicals Denver Water has one of the most successful lead service line (LSL) replacement programs in the country. Since it began the program in 2020, the utility has replaced nearly 14,000 LSLs—prioritizing lines to buildings serving vulnerable populations, such as child-care facilities. Denver Water …

As the water situation becomes particularly dire in Oregon's Harney Basin, EDF and Culp & Kelly, LLC have released a new Voluntary Agreements Analysis report to advance the community’s understanding of one potential approach for locally driven water management.

USDA awarded $2.8 billion for pilot projects that develop and expand markets for crops and livestock farmed in ways that reduce emissions or sequester carbon.

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) welcomed Michael Myatt today as a Senior Director, Climate Resilient Water Systems, to help lead its California water work.

The times demand nothing short of a comprehensive rethinking of how we use our quickly dwindling water resources — while we still have an opening to act.

Testimony by Vanessa Puig-Williams, Director, Texas Water Program, Environmental Defense Fund, August 24, 2022