Circle of Blue
Circle of Blue is informing the world’s most important decisions about water, food, and energy in a changing climate. To subscribe to our newsletters, visit: circleofblue.org
- Cities across the West are racing to lock down water—before it gets even more expensive. From $200M+ pipelines to desalination and reuse, the era of cheap water is over. What’s rising fastest: costs, controversy, and urgency.
- Young people are using cameras to document climate change—and to imagine solutions. From the Great Lakes to coastal marshes, their photos tell a story of loss, resilience, and optimism. Awareness, creativity, and collective action can still shape the future. buff.ly/59xXLkI
- This week in Fresh, Circle of Blue breaks down Indiana’s nuclear push, federal moves to exempt advanced reactors from environmental review, Michigan’s push to strengthen dam safety after years of failures, and a proposed constitutional right to clean water in Wisconsin.
- The USDA has paused loans for anaerobic digesters after finding high delinquency and underperformance rates. Critics say manure-to-gas projects prop up factory farms while delivering poor returns compared to solar. What comes next for biogas funding? #USDA #Biogas #FactoryFarms #RenewableEnergy
- Jolted by Climate Change, Youth Perch with Strength and Vision Late last month, Jonathan Fisher, one of the good people devoted to changing the world, got in touch to pitch me on a “participatory photography” project. Fisher was born and raised in Bronx, New York, and after spending much of his…
- Western U.S. Cities Open Wallets in Quest for Water Little more than two months ago, on an unusually rainy November evening, the Queen Creek Town Council staked claim to the city’s future. Queen Creek, located in central Arizona southeast of Phoenix, was founded in 1989 but is already home to some…
- It's World Wetlands Day. Wetlands protect drinking water, reduce flood risk, store carbon, and sustain biodiversity—yet they’re disappearing fast. We’ve reported on wetlands from the Great Lakes to global river basins. Explore our wetlands coverage today: circleofblue.org
- The Bureau of Land Management now expects to publish a final environmental impact statement for the Pine Valley Water Supply Project on February 27, 2026. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy
- On February 4, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works will hold a hearing on cybersecurity for America’s water infrastructure systems. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #Environment
- Phragmites is a reedy, non-native wetland plant that has grown into dense, ecologically-damaging clusters along Great Lakes shorelines. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- A White House advisory group is preparing to recommend an overhaul in how FEMA distributes post-disaster aid, according to Politico’s E&E News. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- Representatives in the western states introduced several water-supply bills in the last week. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- 11: Features that the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, and Interior should incorporate into their agreements with tribes that would strengthen tribal co-management of land and waters Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy
- A federal financial oversight board’s annual report notes that the Trump administration removed climate-risk guidance for large financial institutions. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #Environment
- USGS researchers assess a less-toxic means of controlling a non-native, ecologically-damaging reed in the Great Lakes. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- White House advisory group recommends changes to FEMA’s disaster response. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- BLM revises its publication date for a final environmental assessment of a proposed groundwater pipeline in southwest Utah. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- South Dakota representatives introduce three bills to authorize feasibility studies for regional water supply projects, including two Missouri River diversions. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/nCkxv4x #WaterNews #WaterPolicy
- Water cooperation has kept the peace for decades. Now it’s unraveling. As climate pressure, geopolitics, and unilateralism collide, shared rivers are entering a dangerous moment. Can the 2026 UN Water Conference reverse the slide?
- A 50-year-old FEMA rule was meant to prevent floods. Instead, it’s stopping projects that could reduce flood damage and clean up polluted rivers. Now, Congress is considering a fix. buff.ly/IcZGALr #WaterPolicy #FloodResilience #ClimateAdaptation #PFAS #WatershedRestoration #RiverRestoration
- Chris Jones Campaigns to Clean Up Iowa’s Water Three years ago Chris Jones was a decorated research engineer at the University of Iowa, where he directed Iowa’s network of stream pollution monitors and published details about state water quality in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Secure in his…
- A little-known FEMA “no-rise” rule meant to prevent flood damage is now blocking floodplain and stream restoration nationwide. From Wisconsin to Washington, projects are stalled—until bipartisan lawmakers step in to fix it.no
- Rivers of Death By Julian Cribb; Jan 11, 2026 Published on Substack The rivers that are the lifeblood of the planet and of human civilisation are dying. Worldwide, the evidence is unequivocal, massive, unchallengeable. Humans are hastening to destroy their main source of food, drink, nature and…
- The Uru Chipaya, indigenous to the Bolivian highlands, are migrating from their homelands amid long-standing drought and the disappearance of a major lake. The Stream newsletter gives you access to the latest global water news: buff.ly/MpBUyMY #WaterNews #GlobalWaterNews #EnvironmentalNews
- Planet Enters Era of ‘Global Water Bankruptcy,’ UN Report Says The planet’s water reserves are overstretched and polluted, pushing the warming world into a dangerous condition of “water bankruptcy,” argues a new UN University report. This is not an alarm bell for the future, the report states.…
- Speaking of Water | Global Water Bankruptcy, a Conversation with Kaveh Madani A new UN University report makes the case that water managers have failed at their job, allowing water sources to be depleted and polluted to such a degree that the warming planet requires a declaration of “water…
- The filling of wetlands and mangroves in northern Sri Lanka to make way for a new cricket stadium would result in catastrophic flooding, its critics say. The Stream newsletter gives you access to the latest global water news: buff.ly/MpBUyMY #WaterNews #GlobalWaterNews #EnvironmentalNews
- Warming alpine temperatures and precipitation falling as rain instead of snow are rapidly changing the landscape of global winter sports competition. The Stream newsletter gives you access to the latest global water news: www.circleofblue.org/stream/ #WaterNews #GlobalWaterNews #EnvironmentalNews
- Above-average winter rains ended a seven-year drought in Morocco, as plans to improve future water security center on desalination and new dams. The Stream newsletter gives you access to the latest global water news: www.circleofblue.org/stream/ #WaterNews #GlobalWaterNews #EnvironmentalNews
- A new report released this week by the University of Virginia’s Cooper Center for Public Service analyzes the economic and energy impacts of data centers in the eight Great Lakes states. Want access to the latest Great Lakes news? Sign up for Fresh today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment
- Senate Bill 729, introduced in the Wisconsin Senate in December, marks Wisconsin’s first proposed legislation to require greater transparency from data centers regarding their water and energy use. buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment #WaterNews #Freshwater #EnvironmentalNews #News #Water
- A new report on data centers’ economic and energy impacts in the Great Lakes region forecasts they will account for 20 percent of the basin’s total electricity demands by 2040. Want access to the latest Great Lakes news? Sign up for Fresh today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment #WaterNews
- Legislation proposed in Wisconsin would require data centers to source 70% of their energy from renewable sources in order to qualify for tax breaks. Want access to the latest news on the region that holds 20% of the world’s freshwater? Sign up today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment
- A bill seeking to overhaul the scope of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management passed out of committee this week on a 5-3 party-line vote. Want access to the latest news on the region that holds 20% of the world’s freshwater? Sign up today: www.circleofblue.org/fresh/ #GreatLakes
- High levels of PFAS—“forever chemicals”—have been found in private wells across Michigan, leaving millions of residents responsible for testing and filtering their own drinking water. One family’s story reveals the gaps in protection. Read more.
- Michigan is cracking down on one of the nation’s biggest sources of water pollution. New rules now limit when and how industrial farms spread manure—putting the state at the forefront of regulating farm runoff. Read more at www.circleofblue.org
- The Minnesota DNR has greenlit exploratory drilling in up to 19 locations just south of the Boundary Waters Wilderness Area. Want access to the latest Great Lakes? Sign up for Fresh today: www.circleofblue.org/fresh/ #GreatLakes #Environment #WaterNews #Freshwater #EnvironmentalNews #News #Water
- Three Democratic Michigan state senators have introduced new bills aiming to regulate and monitor the amount of water and energy that data centers in the state can use. Want access to the latest Great Lakes? Sign up for Fresh today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment #WaterNews #Freshwater
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- State senators in Indiana have similarly proposed legislation that would require data center energy and water use estimates before granting construction permits. Want access to the latest Great Lakes? Sign up for Fresh today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment #WaterNews #Freshwater
- Lawmakers in Michigan have introduced three new bills to limit and track the amount of electricity and water that data centers in the state consume. Want access to the latest Great Lakes? Sign up for Fresh today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt #GreatLakes #Environment #WaterNews #Freshwater #EnvironmentalNews
- A massive industrial campus under construction outside of Indianapolis will require 25 million gallons of water per day, with discharges planned to flow into a public reservoir. Want access to the latest Great Lakes? Sign up for Fresh today: buff.ly/KjCLTMt
- Combatting Agricultural Pollution: Michigan’s New Manure Management Rules LANSING. Mich. – Because lawmakers and regulators embrace the principle that agriculture’s primary objective is to feed people, farming is a sacrosanct industrial sector in the United States. Understand that every industry…
- The U.S. Supreme Court, in mid-December, declined to hear a California water case, SJV Water reports. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- The EPA finalized a rule that extends the deadline for coal-fired power plants to install equipment to remove toxic metals in their wastewater. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/27kcR2U #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- A bill introduced in the House would approve a water rights settlement with the Yavapai-Apache Nation. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- 14.55 Inches: New 24-hour rainfall record for Wisconsin, recently certified by a committee that included NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: buff.ly/27kcR2U #WaterNews #WaterPolicy
- The Supreme Court declines to hear a California water case. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- A cloudburst in Wisconsin this summer set a state precipitation record. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- USGS investigates wastewater chemicals in Grand Canyon springs. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
- A water rights settlement for the Yavapai-Apache Nation is introduced again in Congress. Want to gain access to the latest water policy news? Sign up for the Federal Water Tap today: www.circleofblue.org/water-tap/ #WaterNews #WaterPolicy #EnvironmentalNews
