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Water Flows Into Delta
A historic "pulse flow" returns life to the Colorado Delta, which has been parched for decades.
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Relief on Tap for Colorado Delta
A groundbreaking agreement between two nations allows for restoration of a rich ecosystem.
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Can California Farmers Save Water?
Two fast-approaching deadlines threaten to undermine the future success of the Quantification Settlement Agreement, which aimed to wean California off its overdependence on Colorado River water.
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Is America's Water Safe?
Yes, water in the U.S. is mostly safe to drink. But the answer is murkier than you might like.
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Lessons From California's Ancient Droughts
Scientists have mounting evidence of centuries-long droughts in the West's distant past. They warn that Californians are now vulnerable to a drought that is measured in decades—or even hundreds of years.
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Start of the Amazon River
Why are researchers and explorers still arguing over where the Amazon River starts?
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Defending a Western River
Kirk Klancke has watched over the Fraser River for decades. "Education is what is going to save these rivers," he says.
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Epic California Drought
The good news is that new methods of monitoring water from space work very well. The bad news is that we are running out of it.
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The Rise of "Peecycling"
Human waste can be converted into valuable fertilizer, if people can get past the "ick" factor.
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Ice Cover Affects Lake Levels
The announcement last week that $300 million was included in the 2014 federal spending bill for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative was followed this week with more good news about water levels.
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New Species of River Dolphin
The Araguaian boto is a proposed new species in Brazil that is thought to be highly endangered.
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Exporting the Colorado River
As the West suffers long-term drought, experts look for ways to save water while still supporting local farmers.
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Waterworks Weaknesses Exposed
Utilities can't afford to test for every chemical, and infrastructure is aging.
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Ecological Effects of West Virginia Spill
Scant data available on spilled chemical, raising concerns about its long-term ecological effects.
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Vast "Lake" Found Inside Greenland
Scientists say the unlikely liquid water trapped inside Greenland's ice sheets may hold clues to the effects of global warming.
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Cahokia's Mysterious End
Researchers have found evidence of a massive flood around 1200 C.E. that may help explain the demise of Cahokia, then the largest city in North America.
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Collapse of Civilizations Explained
A new study shows that drought spurred the collapse of Bronze Age civilizations on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean.
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Bizarre Mystery Fish Identified
What mysterious fish has a large head and is covered with sharp spines on the top and bottom of its body?
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7 Giant River Otter Facts
Reddit users are crazy about giant river otters—here are seven facts you otter know about this South American critter.
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New Species of Giant Fish
This huge, air-breathing fish plies the waters of the Amazon.
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Kenya's Giant New Aquifer
Kenya's recently discovered aquifer could help the impoverished, drought-ridden country develop. But are aquifers a sustainable source for water?
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Colorado Flooding Leads to Oil Spill
Deluged oil and gas wells have been shut down, and at least one significant spill of crude has been reported.
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Climate Change Spells Trouble for Anglers
New science reveals threats to prize fishing streams in warming world.
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Eight Glasses of Water a Day?
First Lady Michelle Obama has called for adding a glass of water to your daily hydration. But how many glasses do you need to drink each day?
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Water Wars: Egyptians Condemn Ethiopia's Nile Dam Project
The building of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has ignited a water debate between Egypt and Ethiopia.
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Amid Drought, Explaining Colorado’s Extreme Floods
Flash floods in Boulder area may also have ties to fires and climate change.
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Arizona Irrigators Share Water
Farmers in the Verde River Basin employ new technology to benefit a desert environment.
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The Old Man and the River
Montana Senator Max Baucus and the fight to protect a wild gem: the North Fork of the Flathead.
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Hellbender Giant Salamanders Reintroduced
Also called snot otters and devil dogs, the big amphibians get a chance for a comeback.
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200-Year-Old Shipwrecks Invaded
On the bicentennial of the sinking of the armed schooners Hamilton and Scourge in Lake Ontario during the War of 1812, invasive mussels are threatening the remarkably intact shipwrecks.
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Feds Slash Colorado River Release
A multiyear drought spurs new restrictions on a dam that serves millions of people. With interactive before-and-after.
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Missing Frog Resurfaces in Honduras
A critically endangered "rain frog" makes an appearance, but is still threatened by illegal logging.
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Freshwater Organisms Survived Asteroid
The same biological adaptations that some creatures evolved to deal with living in freshwater also helped them survive the asteroid impact.
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New Twist in Fracking's Link to Quakes
A study finds that wastewater injection from fracking can make faults more vulnerable to tremors triggered by far-off seismic events.
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Turtles Flourishing in Golf Courses
New studies show that well-managed courses offer better habitat than some farm and park ponds.
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Largest Freshwater Turtle Almost Extinct
In June, the last known pair of the near-extinct Yangtze giant softshell turtle mated again—and, scientists hope, made babies.
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Cities Expose Buried Rivers
The latest trend in urban renewal involves opening up underground streams, many of which support new parks.
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Light Paths Reveal Water Currents
British photographer Joel James Devlin makes haunting images of night landscapes.
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Endangered Frogs Released With Tiny Transmitters
California's mountain yellow-legged frog gets new hope from captive breeding.
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Rebirth of Lake Sturgeon
An ancient species shows signs of a comeback in the Great Lakes.
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Photos: Europe Underwater
Germany and nearby countries brace themselves as record-breaking water levels burst over river banks.
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'Extinct' Frog Rediscovered in Israel
The first amphibian to officially be declared extinct has been rediscovered in Israel.
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Billion-Year-Old Water Found
Water seeping out of a Canadian gold mine is not only ancient, it harbors life.
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The Turtle and the Town
Port Deposit, Maryland, is reviving its economy by saving a reptile.
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China Compensates Clean Water
New programs reward those who protect water supplies.
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Water Bank Revives Parched Delta
Local communities work together along the Colorado River.
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A Plea for Water
Each American uses 2,000 gallons of water per day—mostly for food. How can we provide a nutritious diet with less water?
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Saudi Arabia Stakes a Claim on the Nile
After draining four-fifths of its massive aquifer for unsustainable agriculture, the Saudi Kingdom turns to verdant Ethiopia.
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Mali Drained by Foreign Business?
Subsistence lifestyles and diverse wildlife hang in the balance in Mali's inland delta, thanks to ambitious plans to divert water for irrigation.
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California Farms Welcome Birds
Migratory birds are taking refuge on farms in California's Staten Island as part of a conservation plan.
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Drought Reaches New Orleans
The record temperatures and lack of rain that have devastated crops in America’s heartland upstream also have weakened the once mighty Mississippi River’s defenses against saltwater intrusion.
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Going Back in Time
Sandra Postel believes we have the ability to restore the Colorado River.
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The High Costs of Free Water
We’ve all witnessed the power of a price signal when the cost of gasoline rises. The problem with water, many economists say, is the fact that it is essentially free.
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Lake Trout Are Bad News for Lake Yellowstone
Ospreys, bears, and especially cutthroat trout suffer because of the non-native fish.
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Pictures: The Life-Giving Nile River
For more than 5,000 years, the Nile has directed the development of civilization in northern Africa, but it has also been the source of immeasurable damage and destruction.
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Grabbing Water From Future Generations
Many of the world's aquifers are being pumped dry to support unsustainable agriculture.
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How Drought on Mississippi River Impacts You
The drought-plagued Mississippi River is holding up barge traffic, impacting everything from Japanese feedstock to American beer.
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Fishing the Forgotten River in the Nation's Capital
Thousands of people consume fish from Washington, D.C.'s highly polluted Anacostia River, despite safety warnings.
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Pictures: Greening the Desert
From Texas to Saudi Arabia, people are growing food and fuel in the desert—sometimes with deleterious effects.
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Colorado Wildfires Threaten Water Supplies
As fires are contained, water managers assess the damage, draw more on the Colorado River, and try to prepare for a dry future.
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Philadelphia Cleans Up Storm Water With Innovative Program
City officials deploy permeable paving, rain barrels, tree trenches, and other water-saving technology.
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Groundwater Depletion Accelerates Sea-Level Rise
As aquifers are pumped out around the world, the water ultimately makes it to the oceans.
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Bugs Help Measure Impact of New Transoceanic Highway on Amazon
Scientists deploy "leaf packs" to survey threatened water quality in Peru.
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Scientists Race to Save World's Rice Bowl From Climate Change
More frequent floods and droughts expected in Southeast Asia.
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Warm Spring May Mean Drought and Wildfires in West
Decreased snowpack in the Rocky Mountains may compound problems for Colorado, Arizona, California, and other Western states.
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Climate Change Linked to Waterborne Diseases in Inuit Communities
A recent study of Inuit communities may warn of more widespread threats to water quality.
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Under Unspoiled Rivers
Photographer Michel Roggo takes an intimate look at water.
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Pictures: Hindu Pilgrims Leave Mark on Mountain
Pilgrims visiting a holy cave along the Amarnath Yatra route in Kashmir in the Himalaya are melting and polluting the glaciers.
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Artificial Glaciers Water Crops in Indian Highlands
Villagers discover that it is easier to store water in ice than in a reservoir, and less is lost to evaporation.
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Reclaimed Wastewater for Drinking
A new report highlights advancements in reclamation technology and predicts growth in water treatment programs.
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Fate of the Mighty Mississippi
Scientists propose solutions to the environmental and socioeconomic costs of industrial agriculture on the river.
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Fish Are Midair Body Snatchers
For the first time, researchers have observed fish leaping into the air to prey on birds on the wing.
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New Film Shows Great Lakes Climate Change
A dramatic drop in lake levels was the most surprising discovery for director William Kleinert.
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Eco-Artist Basia Irland and Her “Ice Books”
Her aim is to connect people to their local waters and watersheds in ways that will motivate concern, caring, appreciation, and stewardship.
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A Reflection on Water
In a world divided by race, tribe, gender, and religion, it is water that connects us all.
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Water Resolutions for a Sustainable Planet
Each of these water-saving measures is important, and practicing them should be part of everyone’s water conservation ethic.
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Hormone-Disrupting Chemicals Linked to Fracking
Fracking poses potentially serious risks to drinking water quality and human health.
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Botulism Bacteria Blamed for Deaths of Waterbirds on Lake Ontario
Botulism bacteria was blamed for the death of birds in northern Lake Michigan in 2012 and in eastern Lake Ontario in 2013.
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Grand Experiment Flows From Lake Mead
A dam release on the Colorado River offers a unique opportunity for scientists to study how plants, trees, birds, and fisheries respond to an experimental pulse of river water.
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Helping the Colorado River With a Text
Minnesotans helped our campaign “Change the Course” restore seven million gallons of water to the Colorado River in a single day.
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Smarter Irrigation Returns Water to Arizona’s Verde River
Instead of drying up for miles during the irrigation season, the Verde keeps flowing.
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Lake Science Goes High-Tech
By studying lakes, scientists can gain insights about the effects of storms on the surrounding landscape.
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Film Highlights Concerns in Cambodia
Scientists and conservation experts are urging the government of Cambodia to put a moratorium on the development of hydropower dams.
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Some Cranberries Have a Smaller Water Footprint
A new technique to growing cranberries promises to be more water-efficient.
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Students Rally Around Water Conservation
A school integrated freshwater into its curriculum—and now the students are teaching their community about water's long road to the faucet.
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In Ireland, Water Will No Longer Be Free
Billing is scheduled for the first quarter of 2015.
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Worst Weather Ever: Is It Cliché Yet?
Changing landscape and climate threaten local and migratory wildlife.
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On Flood and Thirst
How communities are adapting to the age of unpredictable water.
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Migration by Any Means Necessary
The Siberian crane is a key indicator of a community's water health.
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Stronger Efforts Needed to Reduce Nitrate Pollution
Nitrate pollution in the Mississippi River Basin continues to rise.
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11 Rivers Forced Underground
These rivers were buried long ago, changing the landscape.
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8 Rivers Run Dry From Overuse
From the American West to China, Australia to India, some of the world's most important rivers have been drained dry for agriculture, industry, and drinking water.
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13 Scariest Freshwater Animals
From the fearsome piranha to the mighty anaconda, see some of the world's most terrifying aquatic species.
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San Diego's Rivers
San Diego's waterways face threats from mining, pollution, and overuse, but they also support important species.
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Veins of the Planet
Rivers run through the heart and soul of communities. But, increasingly, they run on human terms rather than on Mother Nature’s.
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Photos: Dams Threaten Megafishes
Eleven proposed dams on the Mekong River could generate crucial electricity—and threaten the delicate home of endangered megafishes.
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Megafishes
From sturgeon to taimen, giant freshwater fish are some of the most rare and vulnerable species on Earth.
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Killer Fungus Hides in Crayfish
The crustacean is a reservoir for fungus responsible for worldwide amphibian declines.
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Photos: New Giant "Bearded" Crayfish Species
Scientists have found a unique new species of crayfish in Tennessee and Alabama that is twice the size of other known crayfish in the southeastern U.S.
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"Alarming" Amazon Drought Photos
A megadrought has gripped the Amazon, drying up rivers and cutting off thousands dependent on boat traffic for survival.
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Blog: "Sewer Mining" Recycles Waste Water
A golf course in dry Australia shows how water can be reclaimed efficiently.
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Freshwater Conflict Photos
World water supplies have stayed the same since the days of the dinosaurs, but human use has tripled since 1950. Sometimes there’s simply not enough water to go around.
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Dams, Levees, and Irrigation
Everyone needs freshwater, but many people don’t live near a reliable source. See how human hands have changed the way water moves around the Earth.
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Epic Vanishing Acts
See before-and-after scenes of drought, glacial retreat, and more freshwater on the brink.
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Photos: Water-Savvy Cities
Take a look at some of the most promising innovations and policies being tried to keep urban areas and their residents hydrated.
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The Burden of Thirst
Where clean water is scarcest, the task of fetching water defines life for women.
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The Last Drop
Earth’s future rests on better irrigation and shorter showers.
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Photos: Our Thirsty World
We may not get all the water we want. But we can have the water we need.