The public lands around the North Fork Valley include the West Elk, Maroon Bells, and Ragged Wildernesses, Thompson Divide and the Grand Mesa. The Curecanti National Recreation Area, Black Canyon National Park and the Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area are here too, marking the eastern edge of the Colorado Plateau.

These public lands and the natural functions they provide safeguard our drinking water supplies and irrigate our farms, they provide important habitat values and strengthen resilience to, and help mitigate impacts from, climate change.

Two years after the Colorado Farm & Food Alliance (COFFA) sounded the alarm with its "Gunnison Basin: Ground Zero in the Climate Emergency" report, the urgency for climate action has only intensified. 

But it's not only bad news. Across the Gunnison Basin, as in many rural places across the southwest, innovative solutions are taking root, offering a roadmap for other communities facing similar challenges.

In 2025, we expect ongoing attempts to rollback current environmental and conservation policy – based on stated intent from the new administration and Congress, along with early action and leadership changes in agencies and on committees – with a hard shift away from natural resource protection, environmental justice, and climate action. 

The CO Farm & Food Alliance is troubled by this change in federal direction. We will work with partners to defend the progress made and seek opportunities to continue that progress.

Climate change is reshaping agriculture and food systems around the world, presenting both challenges and opportunities. That includes here in western Colorado. 

Impacts we are already experiencing range from extreme weather events and water scarcity to growing seasons and crop productivity changes. And agriculture, together with related land-use, is a major contributor to the drivers of climate change. 

However, agriculture also holds the potential to adapt to these changes and as a solution to the climate crisis. Here's a look into the intersection of climate change and agriculture, incorporating insights from the Gunnison Basin.

The water year, spanning from October 2023 to September 2024, plays a crucial role in understanding Western Colorado's water dynamics. This article delves into the observations from this water year and what they mean for the future of water in Western Colorado.

An update on climate change indicators documented throughout 2023, along with some new information on policy and local projects that highlight climate solutions.