Items by Patrick Farrell
Mountain bikers are finally winning respect, along with
increased access to trails, but a growing breed of gonzo riders
with heavy, fast, high-tech bikes -- and a thirst for riding in
wilderness – could threaten all that.
Former California Rep. Pete McCloskey says the need to
defend the environment is behind his decision to run against
Richard Pombo in the Republican primary
Faced with an increase of oil and gas drilling permits,
energy companies are looking overseas, particularly to China, for
enough equipment and crews to work in the West
Perchlorate, a toxic chemical used in rocket fuel, has
been found in drinking water wells, but that won’t stop the
development of West Creek, a planned community northeast of Los
Angeles
In Craig, Colo., Moffatt County Sheriff Buddy Grinstead
fights an epidemic of methamphetamine use on the oil and gas
rigs
Ordinary Wolves, Seth Kantner’s extraordinary debut novel, is the coming-of-age story of a young man on the remote Alaskan tundra
Assistant Interior Secretary Rebecca Watson blames
environmental protests for hobbling gas drilling in the Rocky
Mountains, but much of the delay comes from problems with the
industry’s applications
More than half the windmills on California’s
Altamont Pass will shut down for two months this winter so
migrating birds can pass safely through the area
New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici says he wants to give more
money to the Middle Rio Grande Endangered Species Act Collaborative
Program – if the program will trim its membership and put
itself under federal authority
Environmentalists and ORV groups accuse the BLM of
dragging its feet over implementing a plan to protect an endangered
flower in California’s Clear Creek Management Area
Utah’s Great Salt Lake is loaded with mercury, and
scientists are trying to figure out whether Nevada’s gold
mines are part of the problem
The Washington State Department of Transportation is
planning to build innovative wildlife passages and over-crossings
on a 15-mile section of I-90 east of Seattle
California sea lions ate so many chinook salmon at
Bonneville Dam this year that some fishermen are calling for the
removal and even killing of the protected mammals
The aging chemical weapons stored at the Army’s
Pueblo Chemical Depot will stay in Colorado and be destroyed on
site
The National Park Service has agreed to explore opening
some of the parks to mountain biking
