James Eklund, a legal counselor to Gov. John Hickenlooper and former assistant state attorney general, has been named the new director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board. The 15-member board and the executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources named Eklund to the post.

A major portion of the San Miguel River will be permanently protected under a precedent-setting water right after a Colorado Water Court ruling this week. In a ruling signed on May 20, the Water Court for Division 4 ruled in favor of an application for "in-stream flow" (ISF) protection that permanently safeguards a large section of the San Miguel River west of Montrose, Colo.

The state will start work on a new "Colorado Water Plan" to figure out how to secure enough water supplies across the state to meet urban and rural demands, according to an executive order from Gov. John Hickenlooper. The governor on Wednesday directed the Colorado Water Conservation Board to start work on the draft plan.

Colorado is moving quickly to develop a state water plan by late 2015, culminating more than a decade of work. “I think it’s exciting for Colorado, when you look at all the work that’s been done,” said Alan Hamel, who represents the Arkansas River basin on the Colorado Water Conservation Board.

The state House Tuesday passed a bipartisan resolution to protect Colorado’s water supply and recognize the benefits irrigated agriculture provides to Colorado. “We want to make sure we protect water, it’s a precious resource,” said Rep. Lori Saine, R-Dacono. “Water is the lifeblood of our state.

Battered by drought and drained to a trickle by diversions, the Upper Colorado River got a bit of a boost as a state water court finalized a decree for three important instream flow rights that could help protect trout populations during low-flows.

Colorado’s cloud-seeding program for the central mountains ended April 10, just as a series of strong spring storms rolled into the area.

The Colorado Water Conservation Board today is launching a new website where residents across Colorado can quickly link to information about watering restrictions affecting their local community.

Colorado is entering its third year of drought, with the southeast part of the state rated in the most dangerous level of D-4, or extreme drought conditions.

The upper Roaring Fork River and the lower Crystal River are two of 19 sections of river in Colorado that the Colorado Water Trust has identified as high priority reaches for its 2013 water leasing program.