Some of the less-publicized political appointments of
George W. Bush’s second term will have huge effects on the
West. Meet the people who will direct the EPA and the departments
of Energy, Agriculture and the Interior.
Anti-nuclear groups seek contract for Los Alamos National
Laboratory; California ORVs to stay off desert tortoise habitat;
factory-farm polluters immune to lawsuits; new Utah Gov. Jon
Huntsman Jr. joins property-rights law firm in fight against
mon
Frustrated Wyoming ranchers make an end-run around
legislators and oil and gas lobbies to take the split-estate issue
to the last constituency who might help them: the voters.
Klamath Basin farmers may be hit with a huge increase in
electric rates, but some say that even putting farms out of
business may not save enough water for endangered fish
California’s two largest utility companies are
encouraging farmers to switch from polluting diesel irrigation
pumps to electric ones
Scientists may have found a radioactive "hot spot" at the
former Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant near Denver, soon to be
home to a wildlife refuge
A recent court ruling denying a proposed cat-litter mine
in Nevada’s Washoe County could give local communities more
control over mining projects on federal land.
Los Angeles has decided to pull out of a deal to expand a
coal-fired power plant in Delta, Utah, using the money for
renewable energy instead
Federal agencies say they’re largely powerless to
stop a massive and unpopular ski resort village planned for an
inholding in Colorado’s Wolf Creek Ski Area.