A proposed amendment to the Endangered Species Act could weaken the roles of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service in deciding which species do – or do not – get federal protection. Since the Act was passed in 1973, the two agencies have been responsible for listing species and […]
Sound science or red tape?
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Don’t proclaim the West is dead until you’ve met a Mexican motorcyclist with a wooden leg
My dirty little secret? The one boyfriends can’t tolerate, the one my mother doesn’t know about, the one true friends accept but don’t approve of? When I’m upset, I drive and drink. Well, sort of. Though it’s not what it sounds like, it’s probably not the recommended way for a young woman to cope with […]
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Heard around the West
Yes, at first mention it seems bizarre, but it really makes perfect sense: CPR for wild salmon. Fish resuscitation is now a federal- and state-required skill for anglers who cast “tangle nets” on the Columbia River in spring. Chinook salmon can exhaust themselves to the point of death fighting the nets, and if tossed overboard […]
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Montana’s governor is a poor choice to lead the West
The Western Governors Association, one of the region’s leading political organizations, has earned a reputation for trying to take a moderate approach to divisive issues. Governors of 18 Western states and three Pacific islands have met regularly for years to devise regional policies on wildfire, energy development and other issues, such as environmental protection. They’re […]
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Another way to win back land
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. LEE, Nev. – South of Elko, on the west side of the Ruby Mountains, the shady meadows of the South Fork Reservation are thick with irises. Here, Raymond Yowell, who was appointed chief of the Western Shoshone in 1985 by the members of the […]
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Can money buy happiness?
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. Nearly every tribe in the United States has been affected by the decisions of the Indian Claims Commission. The commission, and the claims court that took over its caseload when it shut its doors in 1979, heard more than 600 cases and paid out […]
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
N.D. court ruling rescinds tribal authority
Decision paves the way for dam construction on sacred burial ground
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Land plan attracts an anti-grazing gorilla
Plan would put 1.7 million acres in hands of local trust
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
River town gets into fish business
You’ve heard of Rocky Mountain oyesters — how about Yellowstone Caviar?
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Dear Friends
A historic, if confusing, moment The residents of Western Colorado’s Delta County, home of High Country News, had been on the edge of their seats for weeks. All eyes were on our three county commissioners, who, on Monday, July 22, would vote whether or not to allow Gunnison Energy Co. to explore for coalbed methane […]
Posted inAugust 5, 2002: Land or money?
Land or money?
ELKO, Nev. – A panicked starling flaps under the rafters and the Beastie Boys shout from the overhead loudspeakers, but the tribal gymnasium seems as still and serious as a classroom before a final exam. On the edge of the basketball court, a young woman stands at a folding table, resting her forearms on an […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
Wolf killing hard to swallow
Dear HCN, It has taken me a week to bring myself to read the lead story “Wolf at the door” (HCN, 5/27/02: Wolf at the door). By the time “Ace” Niemeyer finished wiping out the Whitehawk pack, I was crying so much, I couldn’t see to read. That Defenders of Wildlife, to which I and […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
Matthews wrote wet-blanket litany
Dear HCN, In a recent article, writer Mark Matthews agonized over alleged radical shifts in philosophy and direction here at the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (HCN, 5/27/02: Elk conservation group sharpens its ax). Our immediate response was, “Huh?” Bewildered, we’re still not sure how (or why) Matthews weaved his handful of scrap info into such […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
Feedlots story falls short
I appreciate the time and effort Karen Mockler put into writing the article on Wyoming’s feedgrounds (HCN, 4/29/02: Are Wyoming’s feedgrounds a hotbed of disease?) as well as the editing that was done to consolidate all the information on this complicated issue. Unfortunately, in that process, some of the essence of the interview was lost. First, the Wyoming […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
HCN offers bogus theories
Dear HCN, We had the fantastic “theories” of Columbus “finding” North America when as many as 140 million North Americans had not “lost” it. And the “stories” of Pilgrims encountering “wilderness” when indigenous people cultivated a wide variety of crops the colonizers’ pigs wreaked havoc upon. Now in the May 13, 2002, HCN, we have […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
Scientists uncover a weevil gourmand
COLORADO In the early 1990s, the U.S. Forest Service released approximately 500 flower-head weevils on the edge of Gunnison National Forest, near Almont, Colo., to control the invasive Canada thistle. Apparently, tastes change. In the 12 years since a 1990 study suggested that the weevil preferred Canada thistle to native species, the insect has been […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
The Latest Bounce
The National Park Service has abandoned its quest to kick snowmobiles out of Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks (HCN, 4/1/02: Move over!). Now, the agency is developing a plan that will reduce the number of snowmobiles in the parks, require four-stroke engines to minimize noise and air pollution, and require the use of licensed […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
Big stink over factory farms
UTAH As more large-scale confined animal feeding operations move into the rural West, state and local governments are slowly moving to regulate the industry (HCN, 4/15/02: Raising a stink). But in Utah, a new state law has aborted one county’s attempts to make such operations criminally liable for their impacts on local communities. A bill […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
Salty solution for Bay wildlife
CALIFORNIA If all goes according to plan, the San Francisco Bay will be home to the nation’s second-largest coastal wetland restoration project – good news in a state that has lost 90 percent of its coastal wetlands to development. Agricultural giant Cargill Corporation announced that it will sell almost 12,300 acres of salt ponds to […]
Posted inJuly 8, 2002: The anatomy of fire
A landslide suit for salmon
OREGON Six years ago, a landslide that began in a clear-cut slammed into a house in western Oregon, killing four people (HCN, 12/23/96: Rain and clearcuts make fatal brew). That tragedy prompted state officials to limit logging on steep slopes near homes and busy roads. Now, a coalition of Oregon environmental groups says salmon should […]