Though the economic future of the area is uncertain,
activists welcome a possible Superfund listing for the huge
Molycorp molybdenum mine in Questa, N.M., as a way to save the town
and the Red River from yet more mine-waste pollution.
Magazine
August 28, 2000
Though the economic future of the area is uncertain, activists welcome a possible Superfund listing for the huge Molycorp molybdenum mine in Questa, N.M., as a way to save the town and the Red River from yet more mine-waste pollution.
Feature
Sidebar
A timeline traces the history of the Molycorp mine in
Questa, N.M., and its environmental problems.
Lifelong Questa resident Joe Cisneros says Molycorp has
damaged his air, water and community.
Questa resident Alice Martinez defends the Molycorp mine,
where her husband worked for many years.
Lifelong Questa resident Berlinda Trujillo has spent years
in labor and environmental struggles with the Molycorp
mine.
An anonymous Questeno says the Molycorp mine has given
much to the community and been a good steward of the
land.
Uncommon Westerners
An interview with legendary BuRec director Floyd Dominy
reveals a man proud of the dams and water supply projects he built
throughout the West - especially Glen Canyon Dam and its "most
wonderful lake in the world, Lake Powell."
Essays
This issue's lead is part of a series of HCN stories
intended to create an honest, insightful picture of the Rio Grande
and the varied communities and landscapes it passes through on its
long journey.
Perspective
The long-awaited federal plan for saving the Northwest's
endangered salmon avoids the question of breaching dams and
satisfies almost no one.
Heard Around the West
Cliffhanging tourist photographer; New West attack in
Ketchum, ID; barfing in Harrison Ford's chopper; Albuquerque's
water vigilantes; satellite-controlled watering in UT; off-road
vehicles in Colo. Rockies; Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell's gun vs.
dogs.
Dear Friends
Hot summer brings bears into town; visitors; "Know Thine
Enemy"; Oops and congrats.
News
To avoid an environmental lawsuit and placate angry
farmers, Albuquerque and the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District
will sell enough reservoir water to the drought-plagued river to
keep endangered silvery minnow alive and ditches flowing until
fall.
Lyle McNeal wins lawsuit; S.D. wetlands won't get new
definition; old-growth red cedar in Idaho's Clearwater Nat'l Forest
saved from logging; Montana ballot will have initiative on banning
new game farms; Environmentalists Against Gore.
This summer's wildfires are raising questions about
development in the "wildland-urban interface" - places like
Montana's Bitterroot Valley, where Forest Service firefighters are
using all their resources to protect homes and cabins.
Some practical suggestions for making your home more fire
safe.
During the huge fires, Colorado neighbors Mesa Verde Nat'l
Park and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park worked together and
improved their historically unfriendly relationship, while the town
of Cortez realized anew its economic dependence on the
parks.
Recent studies show that contamination from Idaho's Bunker
Hill Superfund Site has spread throughout the entire Coeur d'Alene
River Basin, and some say the Superfund cleanup effort now winding
down has not helped at all.
Two ranchers give up their grazing privileges on Idaho's
Boise National Forest, blaming rules to protect spawning habitat
for endangered salmon.
Pueblo, Colo., citizens, who worked for years to restore
air and water polluted by their city's one-time steel mills, now
fear a planned cement manufacturing plant will make their newly
livable community unlivable and polluted once again.
Native Americans throughout the West are angry at
Washington state's Republicans for passing a resolution that
attacks tribal sovereignty.
Opinion
Former Sierra Club chairman Mike McCloskey says consensus
is a threat to democracy and the environment, but the writer
believes the move toward collaboration is a sign of a healthy,
maturing West and a vigorous grassroots environmental
movement.
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