The western US is running out of water. What happens next? episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 13, 2026 · 40 MIN

The western US is running out of water. What happens next?

from Stateside with Kai and Carter

Thanks to pollution, overpopulation and the climate crisis, Earth is facing a terrifying new crisis: an irreversible "water bankruptcy". Now, fights over water have ramped up across the world, including in the US west. Host Carter Sherman speaks with Guardian extreme weather correspondent Gabrielle Canon about the battle over the future of the Colorado River Basin, whose water sustains some 40 million people across seven states – but is now drying up. Gabrielle recently rafted down the basin's last "wild" river, the Yampa. Damming or diverting the Yampa could bring the west some much-needed hydration. It may also devastate the vast natural ecosystem that relies on the river's free-flowing waters. Also: Carter and Kai Wright react to the death of South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.Gabrielle Canon’s story on the Yampa RiverGuardian stories on Lindsey Graham:Analysis on Graham as dealmakerThe scramble to replace GrahamLindsey Graham in his own words Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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The western US is running out of water. What happens next?

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