Glen Canyon Dam tops headlines again as water releases skirt hot temps & endangered fish (humpback chub). Built 1956–66; forms Lake Powell on the Colorado.
San Diego County's seawater desalination plant has operated at about one-third capacity since opening, prompting the water authority to explore interstate sales of Colorado River water rights as drought reduces flow into basin reservoirs and heightens scarcity across the West.
Public lands policy moves under renewed scrutiny as the administration signals potential changes to long-standing access rules, with Senators and regulators weighing the impacts on conservation, recreation and energy development.