Bureau of Reclamation Investments and Analysis Will Boost Colorado River Basin Resilience

(Denver, CO – January 17, 2025) — The Bureau of Reclamation today announced it is awarding $388 million in grants for Upper Colorado River Basin water projects. Administered via the Bucket 2 Ecosystem program, the grants will support 42 projects that will restore struggling rivers, streams, forests and wetlands across the Upper Basin of the Colorado River. Additionally, Reclamation announced approximately $100 million for the companion program in the Lower Basin, which seeks to fund projects that provide environmental benefits in Arizona, Nevada, and California.

Alongside these investments, the Bureau also released its long-awaited report on the five proposed alternatives for managing the Colorado River from 2026 onwards. Analysis of the alternatives, which include the Cooperative Conservation Alternative, is a critical step toward finalizing new guidelines in the limited time left to ensure a sustainable future for the basin.

“These welcome investments and analyses come at a critical time for Colorado Basin communities facing a difficult, drier future,” said Kevin Moran, Associate Vice President, Environmental Defense Fund. “The funding will help western states better manage long-term drought and will help states prepare for natural disasters like wildfires that are exacerbated by hotter and drier conditions. We thank Bureau staff — especially Wayne Pullan, Katrina Grantz and Valerie Deppe — for their determined efforts to make these investments a reality. Building on this funding will be essential for ensuring the Colorado River Basin is healthy, secure and prosperous for generations to come.”

“Water funding at all levels of government is critical, impactful and popular,” said Brian Jackson, Director, Western Water, Environmental Defense Fund. “This federal funding will super-size investments in water made recently from state and local sources. In the past five years, for instance, voters in Colorado have passed by wide margins taxes at state, regional and local levels to invest in water projects.” 

Today’s federal investments come in the wake of a rising wave of state-level funding initiatives directed at similar projects. Colorado voters recently approved a ballot measure that allows the state to direct all sports betting tax revenue to water resilience projects.

More on the 42 funded projects.