Two former, high-ranking Interior Department employees, from opposing political parties, call for an overhaul of public-land management.
Politics
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Karen Budd-Falen’s ethics documents spark renewed calls for an investigation
Interior’s new release of ethics disclosures shed new light on the official’s growing scandal.
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Trump’s EPA decided climate change doesn’t endanger public health. Evidence says otherwise.
Extreme heat, severe weather and air pollution are proven to cause negative health impacts.
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Would you pay 1% more for wildlife?
A bill in the Oregon Legislature would tax tourists for conservation.
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Lawmakers call for an investigation into Interior’s Karen Budd-Falen
House Democrats are demanding an ethics probe into the high-ranking Interior appointee over her financial ties to the massive Thacker Pass lithium mine.
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The nation’s trails are disappearing
Government-issued maps offer a promise for safely exploring our public lands, but they no longer reflect the reality of what’s actually on the ground.
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Alaska’s public lands are a political battleground
The first year of the second Trump administration saw a bewildering array of federal actions in the 49th state. Here’s your guide to where things now stand.
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Congress passes environmental funding without Trump’s deep cuts
But the bipartisan effort still trimmed climate research and fails to solve agencies’ chronic underfunding.
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6 takeaways from our public-lands grazing investigation
Subsidies prop up ranching, grazing degrades the land and politics underpin the system.
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A year after the Eaton Fire, permit delays keep Black families from returning
Once known for its trees and community, Altadena is now a test of who — and what — gets to come back after disaster.
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These Americans were prosecuted for voting
In a corner of Alaska, American Samoans are facing prosecution for participating in democracy in the only country they’ve ever known.
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Americans generally like wolves − except when reminded of politics
Recent studies found that attitudes toward wolves became more polarized when people’s political identities were activated.
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
An age-old monument faces modern threats
Scientists say Grand Staircase-Escalante isn’t reaching its full research potential.
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Colorado cannot heal until it confronts Sand Creek honestly
To move forward, Coloradans must face the massacre’s trauma and begin to repair trust.
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Washington approves over 99% of archaeological permits, records show
As tribes struggle to protect their heritage, the nation’s leading state archaeologist says she lacks the authority to stop development projects.
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‘We’re basically slitting our own throat’: Montana rolls back water-quality standards
The EPA approved Montana’s weaker standards for nutrient pollution during the government shutdown.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How the gaming economy helps tribes navigate shifting policies
Tribal sovereignty and prosperity are tied to gaming’s sovereign source of income.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How ranchers accused of breaking the rules dodge oversight
Elected officials interfere with agency efforts to protect the land.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Congress made it easier to ignore grazing’s harm to public lands
Federal law requires agencies to review the environmental impacts of grazing, but government employees allege the system is riddled with loopholes.
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After Trump cuts, seeds sit in the warehouse
Western groups lose federal grants for urgent restoration and conservation projects.