Review of ‘Sage Spirit: The American West at a Crossroads’ by Dave Showalter.
Photographs of the sagebrush sea
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
Dreaming where I walk
An Indian writer becomes an American citizen — and finds herself.
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
Climate showdown, increase in driving, where the wildfires are this season, and more.
Hcn.org news in brief.
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
Tracking grazing’s impacts on bugs
A Montana biologist studies how livestock influence a favorite sage grouse food source.
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
Timeline of the sage grouse saga
One step forward, two steps back, starting from 1995.
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
The Endangered Species Act’s biggest experiment
Will an unprecedented collaborative effort and lots of tax dollars be enough to finally save sage grouse?
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
Beekeepers vs. invasive species rules on federal lands
Should apiarists be allowed to place hives of non-native honeybees on public lands?
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
Accolades and visitors
Reporter Doug Fox wins a big award for his HCN story, ‘Dust Detectives.’
Posted inAugust 17, 2015: Little Big Bird
A biker starts a fire and tourists still underestimate bison.
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
Posted inArticles
A military proposal to use more public lands riles locals in Washington
Residents worry about helicopters landing regularly near trails, campgrounds and wildlife.
Posted inArticles
Wyoming town wants low royalties for coal companies
In Interior Department listening session, Gillette miners air fears of new regulations.
Posted inArticles
Shell exacerbates housing shortage in Alaska port town
Nation’s largest fishing port was already short on housing. With Shell in town, locals say things are getting worse.
Posted inArticles
Nevada’s gold mining industry is hanging on — for now
Gold producers in Elko see job growth, despite an international price drop.
Posted inArticles
Former Montana official: Coal companies must pay their fair share
Every few decades, stories erupt in the press over waste, corruption and abuse of the management of federal minerals. While never fully tallied, the revenue lost by the American people and Indian tribes is undoubtedly huge, running into billions upon billions of dollars. The latest scandal involves the failure of coal companies to pay fair […]
Posted inArticles
Dispatch from White Hope Mine dispute in Montana
The constitutionalist group Oath Keepers is defending a mine that the Forest Service says is out of compliance.
Posted inArticles
Marijuana in Washington: The long road to legalization
Over a year later, officials are navigating thorny legal issues from taxes to licensure.
Posted inArticles
Why is bad science protecting the Lower Snake River dams?
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the country’s dam-building agency, sounded like it knew what it was talking about in 2002. After spending six years and $30 million, the agency confidently recommended not breaching four fish-killing dams on the Lower Snake River. But now, backed by 15 years of data primarily from the Corps itself, […]
Posted inArticles
Fatal shooting in Wyoming raises questions about racism
Were two tribal members the victims of a hate crime?
Posted inArticles
Lessons from the Animas River: dig first, clean up later
The mustard-colored water flowing down the Animas River in southwestern Colorado is a painful reminder of the lengthy gestation time of environmental disasters. The ugly surge was unleashed last week by an EPA contractor, which unwittingly breached a dike that allowed contaminated water from the Gold King Mine to flood into Cement Creek, a tributary […]
Posted inArticles
Ranch Diaries: Selfie culture meets rustic ranch life
We miss a lot with a device in front of our eyes, a filter between us and the real world.