climate change

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema quietly shaped President Joe Biden’s big economic, health care and climate bill.

The newly proposed Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022 would allow water rights to the Colorado, Verde and Bill Williams rivers and would fund infrastructure to deliver about 4,000 acre-feet of water annually to the tribe.

Steadily rising temperatures are part of what the American Medical Association and others have declared a public health crisis, affecting everything from mental health to physical health to social wellbeing.

The funding is available to 22 states and the Navajo Nation.

Heat associated deaths in Maricopa County have hit a half-year record with 17 such fatalities reported through the first week of July and many more under investigation.

The City Flagstaff plans to partner with Arizona’s biggest electric utility to make all city operations carbon-free by 2025.

A new report highlights several logging projects in the U.S. that environmental groups say are endangering some of the nation’s oldest forests. Among the threatened areas is a 15,000-acre swath on the Kaibab Plateau near the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Several key pieces of the rules that govern the Colorado River Basin are set to expire in 2026, including guidelines for dealing with drought and water shortage. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has asked for the public’s input on what should come next. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny spoke about the opportunity to shape the Southwest’s future with University of New Mexico water policy expert John Fleck.

The National Park Service says invasive smallmouth bass have been found in the mainstem Colorado River below the Glen Canyon dam. The announcement comes as lake levels drop to unprecedented lows.

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has signed legislation that will provide $1.2 billion over three years to boost long-term water supplies for the desert state and implement conservation efforts that will see more immediate effects.