I never feel more Western than when I slide through turns at High Plains Raceway.
Wilderness found in a BMW
Posted inGoat
Pisaster disaster: When starfish wasting disease strikes, there’s only one man to call
Dr. Chris Mah may be the only man in the world who can correctly identify any species of starfish on sight. Growing up in San Francisco on a steady diet of sushi and Japanese monster movies, it was no wonder he was attracted to the weird, slimy invertebrates he plucked from the shores of the […]
Posted inWotr
Will there ever be a 51st state?
When we work together, we work to form a more perfect union.
Posted inGoat
Drought and population growth punch Colorado in face, state fights back with water planning
Last week, while speaking at lunch during the Upper Colorado Basin Water Conference in Grand Junction, the director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board could have put his audience to sleep in their cannoli. He was talking about the narcolepsy-inducing topic of water planning, after all. Instead, James Eklund captured the room’s attention by quoting […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
Can rocks and paintballs help humans and mountain goats coexist?
An alternative approach to wildlife management in the Olympic National Forest.
Posted inGoat
Could oil companies incentivize coal plants to use carbon capture tech?
When Gina McCarthy, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, stood before the National Press Club on September 20 and announced draft rules for regulating carbon dioxide from new power plants, she said the proposal, “rather than killing future coal, actually sets out a certain pathway forward for coal.” That way forward is through carbon […]
Posted inWotr
Tree-sitters have changed since the 80s
The protest tradition continues with new demographics.
Posted inGoat
Arizona solar war hearings to start soon amid costly PR battle
What started out as a simple request to alter the way Arizona residents are compensated for power generated by rooftop solar has exploded into a full-blown, national headline-making, wacky political war complete with shady dealings and nasty ads. But it should be all over soon. Perhaps. Arizona Public Service is trying to get that state’s […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
Western towns shaped by industries they pursue
As wacky as it sounds, a bunch of corrupt Arizona politicians in 1885 had a profound effect on my life. Back then, the 13th session of the Arizona Territorial Legislature was dubbed “The Thieving Thirteenth” because its members were unusually prone to graft and beating up opponents. One issue they faced was: Should the territorial […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
The tyranny of technology
The following comment was posted in response to Katie Mast’s Oct. 28 blog, “New satellite technology to detect wildfires an acre in size,” covering advances in remote sensing that could help managers plan and execute firefighting efforts. This sounds great until you consider that advances in technology have helped create the huge wildfires we’re now […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
The Latest: NPS creates new winter-use plan in Yellowstone
BackstoryFor years, there’s been fierce debate over snowmobile access to Yellowstone National Park. In the early ’90s, as many as 1,900 snowmobiles swarmed the park daily, boosting local businesses but angering environmentalists concerned about air pollution and disturbed wildlife. Under President Bill Clinton, the park began phasing out snowmobiles altogether. But it changed course under […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
The Latest: California is first state to ban lead ammunition to protect condors
BackstoryCalifornia condors were nearly extinct by the 1980s. Thanks to habitat loss, wanton shooting, egg collecting, and the scavenger’s propensity for eating animal carcasses tainted by lead bullet fragments, fewer than 30 remained. After decades of captive breeding, about 200 condors now fly free in central California, Utah, Arizona and Mexico. But death by lead […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
Regret and hope
Thanks very much for M. John Fayhee’s story, “Whose Apache Homelands?” (HCN, 10/14/13). What a sad history – doubly so because it’s forgotten and unknown by so many of us, just like nearly all Native American history in the United States. It’s good to know that there are possibilities for moving forward, that some still […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
Political theater – with consequences
Suspending regulations? A review of irrational red tape? Boards of experts being replaced by political appointees (“A groundwater legacy on the rocks,” HCN, 10/14/13)? The Republican governor of Indiana used the exact same rhetoric as New Mexico’s governor, and called for the review of environmental regulations by folks with little expertise. These sorts of moves […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
A timeline of our fascination with outer space
The Southwest has long been a locus for space-related activities – and cosmic secrets. Its clear, dark skies are ideal for stargazing, while its isolated deserts are perfect for cutting-edge scientific research and for conspiracy and extraterrestrial enthusiasts. From meteorites colliding with Earth millennia ago to the dream of reaching space ourselves, we have an […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
Mailbox surprise
The staff and board were surprised and deeply humbled by the generous check that arrived in our mailbox last month, a bequest from the late Gerald Hollingworth of Steamboat Springs, Colo. Gerald was a longtime reader who shared High Country News articles with his friends and engaged them in long conversations on many Western subjects, including […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
I love guns and coffee
Mishaps and mayhem from around the West.
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
Failed secession movements litter the West
Will they ever succeed?
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
An unfair portrait of decline
I was shocked to see a photo of an old motel here in Deming that has been closed for quite some time in a recent issue. It gave the impression that we are approaching ghost town status. We are 17 miles west of Akela Flats, the proposed site of the Apache Homelands Casino, the subject […]
Posted inNovember 11, 2013: Cosmic Prospecting
A survivor, searching for soul
The Old Man’s Love StoryRudolfo Anaya176 pages, hardcover: $19.95.University of Oklahoma Press, 2013. “Letting go of one’s soul mate is not easy.” So writes award-winning author and retired University of New Mexico professor Rudolfo Anaya in his latest novel, The Old Man’s Love Story. Inspired by the death of his beloved wife, Patricia, in 2010, […]