On March 25, 2026, The Denver Board of Water Commissioners declared a Stage 1 drought due to record-low snowpack and below-average levels in reservoirs. Mandatory outdoor watering restrictions of two days per week (on assigned days) were imposed through October 1, 2026. Water use reduction of at least 20% has been requested.

What might come next: Stage 2 drought = increased mandatory water use restrictions, including prohibitions on outdoor watering. Stage 3 = water rationing.

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Drought may be top of mind right now, but it is only one of many threats.

“Nusquam Ire” was first published by X. P. Callahan on Diary Poems, January 24, 2025.

Things have not gotten better.

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The poem:

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Source text: “Quarter of freshwater animals are threatened with extinction” (Associated Press, January 20, 2025)

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How the poem rose to the surface of the source text:

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