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Jen Brinkley, 50, an ice climber from California, climbs a wall of ice while celebrating her birthday at the Ouray Ice Park in Ouray, Colorado, on February 20, 2025. America's ice-climbing epicenter was facing a bleak future with climate change threatening its water supply, until an unlikely savior came to its rescue: a nearby mine. Nestled in the heart of the Rockies, at an altitude of 2,400 meters (7,800 feet), Ouray is famous among mountaineers around the world for its artificial ice park. But a damaging decades-long drought threatened the supply of water, even as the number of winter visitors exploded. But from next season, all that is set to change, after Ouray Silver Mines stepped in and offered to lease the rights to millions of liters (gallons) of water every year – for a peppercorn $1 fee. (Photo by Jason Connolly/AFP Photo)
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