After a record warm and dry winter, ranchers and farmers brace for a challenging summer.

A federal hydrologist appeared to be momentarily at a loss for words last week as he described how dire the latest forecast has gotten for how much water will flow through the Colorado River Basin this summer.

Snowpack levels have improved in the Roaring Fork River Basin, but are still only 17% of normal. Hydrologists say potential for a significant wildfire season remains, and water supplies will still be stretched thin.

The Department of Energy ordered the Craig Unit 1 power plant to continue operating in December, just days before it was set to sunset permanently. Now, Colorado and the utilities that own the plant are suing.

The county estimated the entire project would cost about $31 million. FCI Constructor’s bid came in at around $40 million.

The proposal would clear barriers to geothermal development and give the industry a boost.

After Pitkin County agreed to fund a feasibility study for wildlife crossings, Roaring Fork Safe Passages went on an EcoFlight on Monday. Colorado’s Wildlife Collision Prevention Act is also making its way to the state house floor, which would fund similar projects.

As conventional funding methods become more uncertain, and the Trump administration’s hostility towards scientific research continues, geologist Jonathan Stine decided to try crowdfunding as a way to pay for the cost of his research in Southeastern Utah.

The Bureau of Reclamation announced plans to release water from Flaming Gorge Reservoir, and to reduce flows out of Glen Canyon Dam on Lake Powell in an attempt to prop up the Colorado River Basin’s infrastructure.

When wildland firefighters are on prescribed fires, they’re breathing the same smoke and facing many of the same hazards found on wildfires, but they don’t get the same hazard pay. That could soon change.