High Country News October 31, 2011
Feature
Utah's ancient Lake Bonneville holds clues to the West's changing climate
In Utah, scientists are exploring the site of a long-vanished inland sea called Lake Bonneville to understand the West's past - and future - climate.
Current
Western voters love ballot initiatives -- and sometimes make a mess
A Western tradition of citizen legislation may cause more problems than it solves.
BLM experiments with camouflage to hide renewable power structures
The Bureau of Land Management is working with landscape architects and camouflage experts to better disguise renewable energy infrastructure on public lands.
Development near national parks impacts park ecology
Home building around national parks has a ripple effect on wildlife and habitat inside those parks.
Editor's Note
Western scientists study the past to predict the future
Scientists are digging into the past of the West to try to understand what the future may bring.
Dear Friends
Wanted: a few good board members
High Country News board of directors meets with staff in Reno; David Wolman's "Accidental Wilderness" wins prize; Greg Hanscom to work for Grist; farewell to Elouise Cobell.
Uncommon Westerners
Lawyer Laird Lucas on how and why he fights for the West
The environmental lawyer battles big industries and government agencies in the courtroom on behalf of the nonprofit Advocates for the West.
Book Reviews
To die fighting: a review of Jesse's Ghost: A Novel
In Frank Bergon's new novel, a young man in California's Central Valley is haunted by the memory of his best friend, whom he murdered.
Mapping the Hi-Line: A review of Honyocker Dreams
Writer David Mogen sets out to understand his childhood and his rural ancestors, who lived along Montana’s Hi-Line, just below the Canadian border.
Essays
Wrestling with a destiny of dryness
A Utah writer struggles with his family’s predilection to always end up living in very arid places.
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