The Carbondale Board of Town Trustees on Tuesday, April 28, supported an “escalating ladder” of water conservation measures to plan for a potentially historic low runoff season. The measures come as the runoff is predicted to be at 50% of the 2018 runoff season, which was a historically low year, Scott Wenning, Carbondale Utilities Division’s […]
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Posted inColumns
CVEPA Views: Flow the Acequia Madre
I am just back from the Land of Enchantment and I am still under the spell. On my sojourn through northern New Mexico I wandered through the cacophony of tan hills and deep arroyos (gulches) filled with small villages and intimate neighborhoods. I ate my way from pueblo to pueblo, savoring food that is typical […]
Posted inEnvironment
Fire & Water takes cinematic journey along Colorado River and through wildfire
The Middle Colorado Watershed Council (MCWC) will host the second event of its 2026 Fire & Water Speaker Series next week. The Rifle-based nonprofit organizes events each spring to engage community on topics around water, wildlife and humans within the Colorado River Basin. The first event, hosted last month, introduced hydrologist and writer Robert R. […]
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How did fracking ever become legal?
Freeing oil and gas deposits from its shale, tight sand and coalbed methane coverings was first done with explosives in 1865. Using pressurized fluid and sand, hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, was invented in 1947 and commercialized by Haliburton in Kansas in 1949. Beginning in the 1990s, the process, combined with horizontal drilling, started the methane […]
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Historiography: The Politics of Water
Turn on the tap, water pours out. We take it for granted. But our water was hard-fought in the early 20th century by some of the Roaring Fork Valley’s legendary champions of water rights. In the late 1880s, Glenwood Springs attorney Edward T. Taylor dealt mainly with cases involving land and water issues. Particularly concerned […]
Posted inLetters
Letters – Nov. 27, 2025
Carbondale Fire gives thanksOn behalf of the Carbondale & Rural Fire Protection District Board of Directors, we extend our heartfelt thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s ballot decision. Your support for both the 1.5% sales tax and the $30 million bond demonstrates a shared commitment to the safety, strength and future of […]
Posted inEnvironment
Ute traditions inform water conservation in the Shining Mountains
“If we take care of that water, we know that water is going to take care of us,” stated Lorelei Cloud, who has spent a lifetime advocating for water conservation and access. Cloud, a former vice chairman of the Southern Ute tribe, was also the first tribal member on record to serve on the Colorado […]
Posted inLocal Government
GarCo Report: Grants galore and more
No public comments at this week’s Garfield County commissioners’ (BOCC) meeting. “It’s a skinny audience,” observed Commission Chair Tom Jankovsky. The meeting itself took up a little over an hour of Jankovsky’s and Commissioner Mike Samson’s time. Commissioner Perry Will was absent. The consent agenda was approved and discussion moved into fourth quarter discretionary grants. […]
Posted inEnvironment
RFPLWF unites common interests
In late spring and early summer, signs began appearing at many outdoor access points throughout the Roaring Fork Valley. These notices included reminders to recreate responsibly alongside information about reduced public lands funding and ways to steward outdoor spaces. These signs are just one aspect of work being done by a new local coalition: the […]
Posted inEnvironment
How to recognize blue-green algae and mitigate health risks for humans and pets
Have you ever felt unwell or like you had an allergic reaction after swimming in a pond? Well, the culprit could be blue-green algae, which thrives during warm weather in bodies of water experiencing eutrophication. Blooms of blue-green algae grow quickly and can produce cyanobacteria, which is toxic to humans and can even be fatal […]