While climate-focused candidates won key races in the region, ballot initiatives to limit fossil fuels’ effects failed.
Nuclear energy
Posted inSeptember 17, 2018: The Pioneer of Ruin
The West’s atomic past, in opera halls
On stage and in Congress, Trinity test downwinders fight for recognition.
Posted inArticles
Arizona’s nuclear power caught in crossfire
A renewable energy ballot measure could up the state’s reliance on cleaner energy.
Posted inArticles
Politics are behind a plan to prop up coal and nuclear
Discussion of a ‘grid emergency’ ignores cheaper alternatives like solar and wind.
Posted inJune 25, 2018: Little Weed, Big Problem
Trump’s coal and nuclear bailout helps execs and hurts the grid
In a heavy-handed directive, the Department of Energy caters to industry barons.
Posted inArticles
Nevada’s senators fight the Yucca Mountain resurgence
Republican political favors could again kill the nuclear waste project — for now.
Posted inApril 16, 2018: Cashing in on Standing Rock
Latest: Toxic-tinged wildlife refuge deemed safe for visitors
But conservation groups fear contamination at Colorado’s Rocky Flats still lingers.
Posted inArticles
The Cold War’s nuclear legacy still leaches
Washington’s Hanford site is a lesson for politicians considering new nuclear weapons.
Posted inArticles
Trump’s message for tribes: Let them eat yellowcake
The president’s Bears Ears decision has toxic implications.
Posted inArticles
Don’t let this uranium mill repeat history
The White Mesa Mill’s license is up for renewal under the Trump administration.
Posted inArticles
Meet the latest Trump administration nominees
Ties to industry and possible conflicts of interest dog nominees for environment-related posts.
Posted inArticles
A tour of the West’s radioactive legacy
Trump’s push for nuclear security could send ripples across the region.
Posted inArticles
Is Yucca Mountain back from the dead?
The controversial, long-dormant project rears its head in Congress.
Posted inMay 1, 2017: Change Comes to Short Creek
Love, loss and nuclear reactors
Two new books explore the perspectives of women during the West’s nuclear boom.
Posted inFebruary 20, 2017: Overdosed
Harry Reid exits the ring
In an era of political gridlock, Congress loses a leader who got things done for the West.
Posted inArticles
Through the years: Here’s what to read on Obama’s presidency
High Country News stories show how Obama wrangled the West.
Posted inAugust 22, 2016: 100
Nuclear power divides California’s environmentalists
Is the closure of the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant good or bad for the climate?
Posted inMarch 21, 2016: Making Sense of Malheur
Latest: WIPP nuclear waste spill investigation concludes
Workers incorrectly packaged waste shipped to the facility, whose future remains unclear.
Posted inDecember 21, 2015: Secrets of the Deep
The Corps of Discovery, after the apocalypse
Review of Benjamin Percy’s “The Dead Lands.”
Posted inArticles
Washington state sues feds over worker safety at Hanford
A watchdog group also filed, citing ‘toxic roulette’ for workers at the former nuclear facility.