Commissioners fear states could reduce county power and remove public access.
The counties that actively oppose a federal lands transfer
Posted inArticles
How the California drought exacerbates water contamination
This rural community couldn’t drink the water, even if they had it.
Posted inArticles
National parks scramble to keep up with the crowds
Does Utah’s mega tourism campaign compromise the outdoor experience?
Posted inArticles
Rare-earth mining in the West: an interview with the reporter
Listen to KDNK Radio speak with Tim Heffernan about the big bust.
Posted inArticles
Obama designates three more national monuments
Vast stretches of Nevada and Northern California are now protected, bringing Obama’s count to 19.
Posted inArticles
Old mines still plague Montana’s Clark Fork
Why one of the nation’s largest Superfund river sites can’t address pollution from abandoned mines.
Posted inArticles
Hot times usher in early Northwest wildfire season
While Oregon and Washington broil, the Southwest and Southern Rockies enjoy a welcome reprieve of moisture
Posted inArticles
On crossing the border, writing novels and mangos
The boy’s name was Alejandro, and when I stepped off the bus in Oaxaca, Mexico, he handed me a mango, half of it peeled so I could both hold it and eat it on our walk up the mountain to his village. I was 16 and my Spanish was lousy, which is to say, this […]
Posted inArticles
Obama’s clean water rule won’t protect the West’s water
Summer is here! This is the time when the great outdoors beckons, and we can’t wait to get out to the rivers of the American West to raft, fish, swim and just cool off. But unfortunately, the water we all enjoy has just become imperiled by the Obama administration’s Environmental Protection Agency. Though the EPA’s […]
Posted inArticles
Natural gas exports to Mexico are surging
A major new energy export market quietly emerges as Mexico takes advantage of low-priced U.S. gas.
Posted inArticles
Mapping drought’s impact on electricity generation
Natural gas, wind and solar fill some of the hydropower deficit in California.
Posted inArticles
Rants from the Hill: Such Sweet Sorrow
An Airy Meditation on Flatulence and Independence.
Posted inArticles
Wild Science: Counting Gunnison sage grouse
In this video, go straight to the breeding grounds of a threatened species.
Posted inArticles
For sea lions, a feast of salmon on the Columbia
Fishermen, tribes and environmentalists flummoxed as predator numbers swell below Washington’s Bonneville Dam.
Posted inArticles
Renewable energy on tribal lands stalls out
Is the Bureau of Indian Affairs delaying wind and solar projects?
Posted inArticles
Efforts to save Utah’s Cedar Mesa reach a crescendo
Conflicting county and state proposals would provide various levels of protection.
Posted inArticles
The last ski-bum house
When I first set foot in the rambling, drafty, hunched-over house perched above Telluride, it never crossed my mind that I might live there one day. Ski boots and snowboard bindings lay scattered around the living room. Dogs roamed from room to room, and it was impossible to determine which ones belonged there and which […]
Posted inArticles
Lake Mead watch: As the Colorado dries up, will tourism?
What dropping water levels could mean for the region’s recreation economy.
Posted inArticles
Finding my way back to me
I lived on Padre Island, Texas, during my formative years. I knew the names of all the plants, animals — vertebrates and non — the weather and best fishing and surfing spots. I surfed, ate and lived from the sea. I served as an Air Force Munitions Specialist Staff Sergeant, with two deployments in service […]