Magazine
High Noon for Habitat

February 20, 2006

In Riverside County, Calif., the conflict between the Endangered Species Act’s critical habitat rule and the West’s booming, sprawling, growth-driven economy comes to a head. Also in this issue: The seven states of the Colorado River Basin have come to a groundbreaking agreement that, among other things, will allow cities such as Las Vegas to lease water from out-of-state farms during times of drought.

Feature

High Noon for Habitat
In Riverside County, Calif., the conflict between the Endangered Species Act’s critical habitat rule and the West’s booming, sprawling, growth-driven economy comes to a head
Tony Davis Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Sidebar

Critical Habitat: The Inside Story
A behind-the-scenes look at the struggle over critical habitat reveals the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be an agency at war with itself
Tony Davis Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Editor's Note

The difficulties of cohabitation
Despite its problems and failures – many of them arising from the conflict between the United States’ growing population and our declining wildlife habitat – the Endangered Species Act is a necessary law
Paul Larmer Opinion Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Uncommon Westerners

Dr. Sharon and the lion hunters
Small-animal veterinarian Sharon Senezcko has become a fierce advocate for South Dakota’s mountain lions
Tom Domek Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Essays

Waiting for Rain
The hurricanes in the Gulf and New Mexico’s endless drought lead the author to wonder why it is human beings refuse to take nature seriously
Laura Paskus Essay Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Perspective

The many problems of Richard Pombo
California Republican Rep. Richard Pombo is having a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad year
Jon Margolis Essay Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Book Reviews

Stalking the boojum in the Sonoran Desert
Sonoran Desert Plants: An Ecological Atlas is a revised and expanded edition of a classic botanical guide
Renee Guillory Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Just where is that home on the range?
A View from the Inland Empire, a new collection of essays from Stephen J. Lyons, is an honest account of coming to — and later leaving — the West, and in the process learning about home and heart and family
Laura Paskus Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Under Ground: How Creatures of Mud and Dirt Shape Our World
Science writer Yvonne Baskin’s new book, Under Ground, takes an intriguing look at the planet’s soils and sediments and their strange inhabitants
Staff Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Coyote Warrior: One Man, Three Tribes and the Trial that Forged a Nation
Coyote Warrior by Paul VanDevelder highlights the experience of Raymond Cross, a Mandan/Hidatsa attorney who fights for his tribe’s rights
Staff Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Heard Around the West

Heard around the West
Child-friendly in Salida; new ranchers sell out at a high price; hot real estate in ski country; water fights in L.A.; Bill Richardson’s photograph; "BioWillie."
Betsy Marston Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Dear Friends

Dear friends
Welcome, Lillian Jane Lawrence (Laura Paskus’ daughter); Jonathan Thompson new HCN editor; HCN intern program; William Kent of Moab dies; photo caption correction
Jodi Peterson Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

News

Colorado River states reach landmark agreement
The seven states of the Colorado River Basin have come to a groundbreaking agreement that, among other things, will allow cities such as Las Vegas to lease water from out-of-state farms during times of drought
Matt Jenkins Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
The Latest Bounce
Grazing fees to be cut; Russian drill rigs coming to Colorado; new power plant on Navajo Nation gets big tax break; Washington may become sixth Western state with renewable energy standards
Jodi Peterson Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Tribe brings on the tourists
The Hualapai Tribe has ambitious plans for Grand Canyon West, a tourist destination on its remote reservation bordering the Grand Canyon
Emma Brown Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
'Ghost fleet' in search of a final resting place
Newport, Ore., decides the environmental and financial risks are too great to allow Bay Bridge Enterprises, a ship-recycling firm, to dismantle decommissioned military vessels at Yaquina Bay
Elizabeth Grossman Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Downwinders say fallout study numbers don't add up
A controversial study says only a fraction of cancer cases can be attributed to nuclear fallout in the U.S.
Brett Wilkison Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
BLM rolls back environmental review
The BLM adds 11 new categorical exclusions to the National Environmental Policy Act that will make it easier for salvage logging, grazing and energy exploration
Brett Wilkison Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Southwestern farmers, lawmakers seek solutions to worker shortages
The Western Growers Association says its farmers need another 20,000 workers to harvest this winter’s crop, and President Bush endorses the idea of a guest-worker program to make it easier for migrant workers in the U.S.
Tim Westby Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition

Letters

Wilderness fashion police
Vicky Maclean Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Editorial an exercise in hypocrisy
Bob Lario Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Larmer's generalizations unfair
Zach Mann Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
Roadless areas are for elitists
Dawson R. Hobbs Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
The NRA has it wrong
Tony Dean Feb. 20, 2006 From the print edition
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