NATION Hoping to end a 10-year stalemate over whether permanent climbing anchors should be allowed in wilderness areas, the Forest Service assembled a committee of rock climbers, wilderness advocates, government officials and recreation-industry representatives to advise it on a rule (HCN, 8/17/98: Forest Service pulls anchor ban out of thin air). Thus far, the committee […]
Anchors away?
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
The latest bounce
President Clinton has done it again. On Nov. 10, he created the 293,000-acre Vermilion Cliffs National Monument near the Grand Canyon in Arizona, bringing the tally of new monuments to 10. Clinton also expanded Idaho’s Craters of the Moon National Monument by 661,000 acres. Last-minute politicking by Colorado politicians ensured $5 million from Congress to […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
In Arizona’s growth fight, advertising defined reality
The television ad showed a truck unloading a port-a-potty in the desert, while a family of four stood by with forlorn faces. A voice-over warned that if Arizona’s growth-control initiative passed, a family wouldn’t be able to get water or sewer for a new home outside the boundaries. As a youth walked into the port-a-potty, […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
Old West guns down growth initiatives
Well, so much for the great land-use greening of 2000. Colorado and Arizona’s bold citizen initiatives to toughen their states’ growth-management rules both went down in flames. Colorado’s Amendment 24 rode high all summer, but support for the proposed constitutional amendment to require towns to map future growth and obtain voter approval for changes fell […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
Heard around the West
Tired of basting and babysitting that big bird for Thanksgiving? Why not try SPAM, the pressed pink concoction that does not signify, as rumor has it, “something posing as meat.” No, SPAM is smooshed pork shoulder and ham in a can along with sugar, salt, water and sodium nitrate, reports the Santa Fe New Mexican. […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
‘The suburbs have some bad choices’
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. Eric Kuhn is head of the Colorado River Water Conservation District, in charge of protecting western Colorado’s water interests in the Colorado River Basin. Eric Kuhn: “I think Reilly did Denver a favor. They can focus on their needs. They have a well-thought-out approach […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
‘Where is the metro area going to get its water?’
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. Dick Lamm, governor of Colorado from 1974 to 1986, became well-known nationally for his gloomy forecasts of the future. Dick Lamm: “Ultimately, the metro area is an integral whole when it comes to water. Where is the metro area going to get its water […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
‘The world would be different if not for the veto’
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story. Hamlet “Chips” Barry has been head of the Denver Water Department since 1991. Despite his name, he has acted forcefully to change the behavior of the once-autocratic Denver Water Department. Chips Barry: “One of the problems with the approach the Two Forks proponents took […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
From nuclear fuel to nature trails
Oregon wants to turn an ex-nuclear power plant into a state park
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
A desert state axes water planning
The Nevada Division of Water Planning meets an untimely demise
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
Hear that whistle blowin’
A modern-day railroad baron stakes a claim in an ambivalent town
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
Voters pummel planning, ban new elk farms
In an election full of murky results, at least two decisions were definitive. The region’s twin growth-control initiatives, Colorado’s Amendment 24 and Arizona’s Proposition 202 (HCN, 10/23/00: Colorado’s growth amendment rouses voters) were both defeated by more than 2-1 margins. Proponents of the initiatives blame the loss on relentless – and occasionally inaccurate – media […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
A ‘most improbable scenerio’ has come to pass
Am I some kind of a smart guy? Loyal readers may recall that I recently pointed out on these pages that even in very close elections one candidate always piled up a pretty hefty majority in the Electoral College, rendering the votes of any one state meaningless in the great scheme of things (HCN, 10/23/00: […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
David Brower: Remembering the Archdruid
I was 20 years old and an undergraduate wildlife biology student when I first heard David R. Brower deliver “The Sermon” at the University of Colorado. I had come to Boulder to hear the famous Archdruid, whom I had only known through Sierra Club books and magazine articles before. I knew him by reputation as […]
Posted inNovember 20, 2000: Water pressure
Water pressure
A valiant veto defeated Two Forks Dam; will Denver’s sprawl bring it back?
Posted inNovember 6, 2000: 'Re-inhabitation' revisited
Gorton story a disappointment
Dear HCN, As a former 18-year resident of Washington state (1982-2000), journalist and participant in politics there, I found Steve Stuebner’s article on Slade Gorton a disappointing concoction of free advertising for tribal and environmental biases. The article had its moments in viewing a tight race for the Senate, featuring a strong Democratic candidate who […]
Posted inNovember 6, 2000: 'Re-inhabitation' revisited
The other side of the story
Dear HCN, I was disappointed to read your newspaper’s article of Sept. 25 titled “Backyard Boom” by Rebecca Clarren and the associated sidebar article titled “The playing field has to be leveled.” What concerns me the most is that there does not appear to have been an attempt to verify sources or obtain the other […]
Posted inNovember 6, 2000: 'Re-inhabitation' revisited
‘Reckless charges’ refuted
Dear HCN, The first lesson you learn if you want to be a conservation activist is that you have to know what you’re talking about. Otherwise, you lose credibility. Unfortunately, Larry Tuttle’s letter (HCN, 9/25/00: Response to ‘squishy-soft’) reflects that he has yet to learn that lesson. Our suggestion? Visit the Northern Plains Resource Council’s […]
Posted inNovember 6, 2000: 'Re-inhabitation' revisited
Snake River salmon and steelhead
How much do people value the restoration of Snake River salmon and steelhead runs? Environmental economics students and faculty from Reed College in Portland, Ore., and Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash., are trying to find out using a confidential Web survey. Find the survey at people.whitman.edu/~crouter/survey/intro.htm. This article appeared in the print edition of […]
Posted inNovember 6, 2000: 'Re-inhabitation' revisited
Cowboy Poetry Gathering
The 17th annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nev., Jan. 27 to Feb. 3, 2001, aims to keep the ranching tradition alive and kicking. Contact the Western Folklife Center, 501 Railroad St., Elko, NV 89801 (888/880-5885) or on the Web at www.westfolk.org. This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline […]