The Colorado River flows through the Grand Canyon in 2020. A new study predicts that the river's flows will increase between 2026 and 2050., a solutions journalism initiative supported by the Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water, and Air at Utah State University.“Importantly, we find climate change will likely increase precipitation in the Colorado headwaters,” Professor Martin Hoerling, the study’s lead author, wrote to The Salt Lake Tribune in an email.
But researchers caution that these forecasts aren’t a bailout for the beleaguered river. Climate change will lead to a higher variability in precipitation, meaning that “extremely high and low flows are more likely” on the Colorado River between 2026 and 2050, according to the study.