As Southwest states were pummeled with rain, Southeast Alaska dries out.
Weather dispatch from Wrangell, Alaska: Drought in the rainforest?
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Why is Montana giving its bison specialist the boot?
The state blames budget cuts as it demotes a longtime wildlife biologist.
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More waterways likely protected under new EPA rule
The controversial Clean Water Act rule protects tributaries with any sign of water, no matter the flow.
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The Pleistocene and the present don’t compute
March 15, 2025, For Immediate Release: “Rest assured, Pleistocene Parks Inc. is doing everything possible to recapture our escaped ice age megafauna. Please back away slowly from any African lion you encounter. Keep pets and children away from cheetahs. Do not approach camels, as they may kick, spit and bite. Unless you are in a […]
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Feds move to protect birds from oil pits and power lines
Planned regulations come as many Western migratory species experience steep declines.
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Northwest tribes are a growing obstacle to energy development
B.C. tribal members turned down $260K each in order to stop a gas terminal.
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Wyoming acts to discourage citizen scientists
I am a longtime and enthusiastic citizen scientist. As part of various citizen-science projects, I’ve banded birds, chased tiger beetles, counted frogs, monitored archaeological sites, and documented the lifecycles of plants in my backyard. So I am particularly interested in Wyoming’s new Data Trespass Bill, passed by legislators this March. While some say the bill […]
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A Yosemite gathering takes on culture, race, socioeconomics in national parks
Minorities, millennials and urbanites are less likely to visit national parks than upwardly mobile, white baby-boomers.
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Missoula and the revelations of rape
Missoula, Montana, home of the University of Montana, is abuzz with debates about rape, a football culture gone to extremes, criminal prosecution or the lack thereof, and ruined reputations. You can blame Jon Krakauer, author of “Into Thin Air” and “Into the Wild,” who has now tackled the subject of sexual assault throughout the country, […]
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Rains bring incomplete drought relief to parts of Southwest
Snowpack is above normal in spots, but doesn’t make up for its lack earlier in the year.
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Water-harvest warning
It is very sad that a man of science, Brent Cluff, believes that “water harvesting could support unlimited growth.” In “Tucson’s rain-catching revolution” (HCN, 4/27/15), rainwater harvesting is touted as a way to conserve water. It is a step in the right direction, but only a step, and it has several negative impacts. First, it allows […]
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Warm Northwest
“A crystal ball for the Pacific Northwest” (HCN, 4/27/15) gives us a good summary of what may happen to precipitation in the Pacific Northwest in coming years, but says little about what may happen to temperatures. However, the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute makes it clear: “Every global climate model used by the Intergovernmental Panel […]
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Wagons around Ballona
Articles about this precious Southern California ecosystem are always welcome, and this one delves more deeply into the complexity of Ballona than the typical “this side versus that side” article, which is refreshing (“The Wetland Wars,” HCN, 5/11/15). However, what is still missing from the discussion is the realization that the lack of transparency and […]
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
The Trans-Pacific Partnership could pipe in new business for the Western gas industry
By lowering tariffs and regulatory hurdles, the deal could make it easier to sell natural gas to Japan.
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
The local-federal tug-of-war
A live High Country News panel event, readers get ready to vote in our public lands May Madness, and more.
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Tesla powerplay, Sacramento Delta protections, Recapture Canyon protesters found guilty and more.
Hcn.org news in brief.
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Survival = Anger x Imagination
A review of ‘Crazy Horse’s Girlfriend’ by Erika T. Wurth.
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Politics of the possible
Bruce Babbitt loves to tell this story: At a White House social function in the late 1990s, Babbitt, who was Bill Clinton’s secretary of the Interior, finally got a brief moment alone with his boss. He used it to pass him a note that read: “TR: 230 million acres, WJC: ??” It was a shorthand […]
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
On New Mexico’s Gila River, a contentious diversion gets the go-ahead
Questions remain of how much water it will yield and whether local farmers can afford to buy it.
Posted inMay 25, 2015: Monument Man
Making a monument from scratch
A writer wonders if this piece of Northern California federal land is worth the new designation.