President Bush says the Healthy Forests Restoration Act
and Initiative were needed to fight wildfire, but several years
into the new rules, critics question whether the changes they
brought were helpful or even necessary
Magazine
April 17, 2006
Four years after President Bush launched his Healthy Forests Initiative, the Western woods are abuzz. Also in this issue: "Nevada style" wilderness bill comes to Utah and Citizens unite against gas field chaos.
Feature
Sidebar
Loggers say forest-restoration work, which involves the
thinning and cutting of small, skinny trees, doesn’t bring in
much money
The National Fire Plan, the Healthy Forests Initiative and
the Healthy Forests Restoration Act are explained and
compared
Uncommon Westerners
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
Essays
All over the West, white roadside crosses and spontaneous,
humble shrines mark the holy sites where the souls of human beings
have left this world
Book Reviews
In George W. Bush’s Healthy Forests:
Reframing the Environmental Debate, authors Jacqueline
Vaughn and Hanna Cortner demonstrate that under Bush, "there has
been a rollback of environmental standards and
regulations."
In Condor: To the Brink and Back,
science reporter John Nielsen surveys the life and times of "one
giant bird."
Wayne Parrish’s Legend of the
Eagleman is a suspenseful and engaging novel set in the
world of tribal casino gambling
Communities and Forests: Where People Meet the
Land, is a collection of essays, edited by Robert G. Lee
and Donald R Field, examining changing styles of forest
management
Writers on the Range
The upcoming trial of 11 alleged "eco-terrorists" may not
be the Trial of the Century, but it reminds the writer, a longtime
activist, of the Boston Tea Party
Heard Around the West
Driving a little too far off-road in California; HOV Lane
is not for dummies; scrap metal thieves get creative; dream home
turns nightmare; St. George, Utah, gets expensive; military
recruiters get desperate
Dear Friends
Matt Jenkins leaves the HCN office to
become California-Great Basin correspondent; Western Slope
Environmental Resource Conference and North Fork River Improvement
Association hold annual meetings; visitors; "secretary" Bruce
Babbitt
News
A controversial proposed wilderness bill for Utah’s
Washington County includes utility corridors, motorized-vehicle
trails, and public-land sales designed to accommodate urban
growth
Sens. Max Baucus and Ron Wyden want to raise money for
rural schools by closing tax loopholes; Yates Petroleum won’t
drill in Bitter Lake Wildlife Refuge; Montana wants to keep
Wyoming’s coalbed methane from harming rivers’ water
quality
Farmers, environmentalists, fishermen and tribes are
talking with PacifiCorp officials about the possible removal of
four dams on the Klamath River
In western Colorado, the Grand Valley Citizens Alliance is
trying to work with industry to set protections for landowners
before more drilling gets under way
Grand Junction and Palisade, Colo., try unsuccessfully to
bid on oil and gas leases to protect their water supply from
contamination by drilling
As drill rigs get closer to New Mexico’s Valle
Vidal, the coalition seeking to protect the area is attracting more
support
Outgoing Interior Secretary Gale Norton has opened the
door for counties and states to claim control of roads crossing
federal lands
Idaho’s Fish and Game Department wants to boost
dwindling elk numbers by killing wolves in the Lolo management
zone
Letters
Featured stories
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OPERATIONS DIRECTOR We are a Santa Fe-based nonprofit that builds resilience on arid working lands. We foster ecological, economic, and social health through education, innovation, and collaboration....
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COMMUNITY ORGANIZER Come work alongside everyday Montanans to project our clean air, water, and build thriving communities! Competitive salary, health insurance, pension, generous vacation time and sabbatical....
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CAMPAIGN MANAGER Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA), a nonprofit conservation organization dedicated to protecting, defending and restoring Oregon's high desert, seeks a Campaign Manager to works as...
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HECHO DEPUTY DIRECTOR Hispanics Enjoying Camping, Hunting, and the Outdoors (HECHO) was created in 2013 to help fulfill our duty to conserve and protect our public lands for...
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REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVE, COLUMBIA CASCADES The Regional Representative serves as PCTA's primary staff on the ground along the trail working closely with staff, volunteers, and nonprofit and agency partners. This...
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FINANCE AND OPERATIONS DIRECTOR 
The Montana Land Reliance (MLR) seeks a full-time Finance and Operations Director to manage the internal functions of MLR and its nonprofit affiliates. Key areas...
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DIRECTOR OF CONSERVATION
The Nature Conservancy is recruiting for a Director of Conservation. Provides strategic leadership and support for all of the Conservancy's conservation work in Arizona. The...
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR The Amargosa Conservancy (AC), a conservation nonprofit dedicated to standing up for water and biodiversity in the Death Valley region, seeks an executive director to...
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BIG BASIN SENIOR PROJECT PLANNER - CLIMATE ADAPTATION & RESILIENCE Parks California Big Basin Senior Project Planner - Climate Adaptation & Resilience ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND Parks California is a new organization working to ensure that our...
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CUSTOMER SERVICE ASSISTANT - (PART-TIME) High Country News, an award-winning media organization covering the communities and environment of the Western United States, seeks a part-time Customer Service Assistant, based at...
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SCIENCE PROJECT MANAGER About Long Live the Kings (LLTK) Our mission is to restore wild salmon and steelhead and support sustainable fishing in the Pacific Northwest. Since 1986,...
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HUMAN RESOURCES GENERALIST Honor the Earth is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate based on identity. Indigenous people, people of color, Two-Spirit or LGBTQA+ people,...
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DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Colorado Trout Unlimited seeks an individual with successful development experience, strong interpersonal skills, and a deep commitment to coldwater conservation to serve as the organization's...
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NEW BOOK BY AWARD-WINNING WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST, BRUCE SMITH In a perilous place at the roof of the world, an orphaned mountain goat is rescued from certain death by a mysterious raven.This middle-grade novel,...
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DESCHUTES LAND TRUST VOLUNTEER PROGRAM MANAGER The Deschutes Land Trust is seeking an experienced Volunteer Program Manager to join its dedicated team! Deschutes Land Trust conserves and cares for the lands...
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PROGRAM DIRECTOR Now hiring a full-time, remote Program Director for the Society for Wilderness Stewardship! Come help us promote excellence in the professional practice of wilderness stewardship,...
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WYOMING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS COORDINATOR The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is seeking Coordinator to implement public education and advocacy campaigns in the Cowboy State to unite and amplify hunter, angler,...
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MOUNTAIN LOTS FOR SALE
Multiple lots in gated community only 5 miles from Great Sand Dunes National Park. Seasonal flowing streams. Year round road maintenance.
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RURAL ACREAGE OUTSIDE SILVER CITY, NM Country living just minutes from town! 20 acres with great views makes a perfect spot for your custom home. Nice oaks and juniper. Cassie Carver,...
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A FIVE STAR FOREST SETTING WITH SECLUSION AND SEPARATENESS This home is for a discerning buyer in search of a forest setting of premier seclusion & separateness. Surrounded on all sides by USFS land...
