Although international treaties are best known for settling wars, a treaty could affect an underground gold mine proposed just outside Yellowstone National Park. Under a 1972 international treaty known as the World Heritage Convention, ratified by the U.S. Senate in 1973, Yellowstone was deemed a “world heritage site.” The 136 nations that approved the treaty […]
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Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Grazing allotment in hot water
Oregon environmental groups sued the Malheur National Forest May 11 for violating the Clean Water Act on a grazing allotment along the John Day River near Camp Creek. The groups say grazing has destroyed vegetation along river banks, causing water temperatures on the John Day to hit 75 degrees, seven degrees above the state standard […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Tribe courts nuclear utilities
A New Mexico Indian tribe’s controversial plan to house high-level nuclear waste on its reservation may be rolling. The Mescalero Apache Tribe obtained written commitments in April from more than 30 private utilities to spend $5,000 apiece studying how to finance and manage open-air waste storage. The facility would use concrete bunkers to hold more […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Not for the birds
A grizzly bear that found the seeds in a bird feeder to his liking was recently moved to the southwestern area of Yellowstone National Park. The two-and-one-half-year-old male bear was trapped by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks on private land near Big Sky, Mont., reports AP. The bear was the first trapped […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
A new Navajo newspaper
The Navajo Nation newspaper market already has three major papers competing for readers among the reservation’s 200,000 residents. But Deswood Tome, publisher of a new monthly newspaper, Dinéh Tribune, says there’s still room for one more. “We want to be a newspaper that provides more in-depth news. We want to be the news source for […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Wyoming dam gets go-ahead
Acting on a recommendation from the state’s Water Development Commission, the Wyoming legislature recently approved a $30 million appropriation to build the Sandstone Dam (HCN, 12/27/93). The commission okayed the project despite conflicting evidence regarding the geologic suitability of the site. Mike West, a geologist hired by opponents of the dam, says he found irregularities […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Renewable energy festival
Democracy will be celebrated, but energy independence is the main theme of the first annual Freedom Festival July 3 in Glenwood Springs, Colo. The event features an array of renewable and sustainable energy products. Reggae music, alternative health care and craft booths will also share Two Rivers Park on the shores of the Roaring Fork […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Oil, feathers and EPA
Thousands of birds flying across the Western plains each year fatally mistake oil pits for bodies of water. Once the birds land, their feathers become coated and they die. In its first attempt to address the problem, the Environmental Protection Agency recently fined Texaco Refining and Marketing Inc. and four other companies $300,000 and ordered […]
Posted inJune 13, 1994: A doomed species?
Millions for furniture
Between 1990 and 1992, the Bureau of Land Management in Oregon spent $5.4 million intended for reforestation on staff salaries, new furniture and remodeling buildings, a federal audit reports. Eventually, this misallocation could cost taxpayers up to $200 million from lost timber harvests. The 21-page report also found that since 1990 the Oregon BLM has […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Going to pot
Farmers in Maricopa County, Ariz., may harvest an unexpected crop this summer. Thanks to an unknown culprit who dumped more than a ton of freshly harvested marijuana into an irrigation canal, millions of seeds could find their way onto cotton farms. Steve Werner of the county sheriff’s office said 1,500 pounds of pot were retrieved […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
For rangeland reformers
The Western Legislative Conference is hosting a conference on “Rangeland Reform and Watershed Management in the West” June 24-25 in Denver. The event will profile collaborative efforts among federal and state government officials and ranchers and environmentalists to restore rangeland and watersheds in Colorado, Oregon, Nevada, Washington and Arizona. Speakers include Mike Penfold, an Interior […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Environmental group reaches out
The Colorado Environmental Coalition, a Denver-based non-profit group, recently opened a new office on the Continental Divide’s Western Slope. Norm Mullen, the group’s public-lands coordinator and manager of the new Grand Junction office, will work on wilderness, oil and gas development, wild and scenic rivers, and serve as a link between environmental groups on both […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Learn the limits
The University of Colorado will host a three-day conference on “Regulatory Takings and Resources: What Are the Constitutional Limits?,” June 13-15. The get-together features Larry MacDonnell of the Natural Resources Law Center; Lois Schiffer from the Department of Justice; Mark Squillace, law professor at the University of Wyoming, and John Echeverria, attorney with the National […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Wind in the West
New wind turbines that produce electricity almost as cheaply as new coal- or natural gas-fired plants have spurred four wind power projects in the West. San Francisco-based Kenetech, the nation’s largest developer of wind energy, proposes three projects featuring turbines that adjust to wind speeds while still creating energy at a uniform rate. Two of […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Our West
Perhaps the best way to understand the West is to live it. That’s the guiding philosophy behind the “Our West: Loving the Land” conference hosted by Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, June 19-25. Conference participants will live on a ranch and explore the Wind River Mountains with local environmentalists. There will also be […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Suit halts coyote killings
Suit halts coyote killings When the federal government refused to shoot coyotes from the air last year, ranchers in Idaho appealed to the state Department of Agriculture for help. The agency responded by issuing seven aerial permits to gunners, who killed 193 coyotes. This year was different: Idaho’s attorney general recently shut down the state’s […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Changing the law of the river
The Bureau of Rec-lamation has released a draft plan to change the way the Colorado River is managed within Nevada, Arizona and California (HCN, 2/21/94). “The lower Colorado River needs to meet the water needs of more people,” says commissioner Dan Beard. “In the past, we have managed the river primarily to serve agricultural and […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Power plant disappears
Was it a hoax? Nine months after residents of Show Low, Ariz., fervently debated a proposal to build a 900-megawatt nuclear power plant in the nearby White Mountains, the proposal is dead. “It all just went away,” Show Low City Manager Patrick Sherman told the Arizona Republic. Last June, Phil Downing, then executive director of […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Sharing the land
The Jackson Hole Alliance for Responsible Planning and the Northern Rockies Conservation Cooperative will host a conference on preserving biological diversity surrounding Jackson Hole June 3-5. “Sharing the land: Preserving Jackson Whole,” at Snow King Resort, features field trips, lectures, roundtable discussions and workshops offered by writers and educators. Speakers include wildlife researchers Tim Clark […]
Posted inMay 30, 1994: Can mining come clean?
Mushrooming business is curbed
The Forest Service has developed new rules to get a handle on the Northwest’s booming mushroom industry. During the last three years agency officials in Oregon and Washington have seen violent conflicts break out among pickers, as well as damage to forest lands (HCN, 6/28/93). Mike Rassbach, special forest products coordinator for the region, says […]