The Bechtel Corporation’s Soda Mountain solar farm will undo decades of conservation in California.
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Bipartisan weather emerges in the Northern Rockies
Blustery winds that tear at your exposed skin and clothing day after day, keeping you on edge. Outbursts of bone-rattling thunder and lightning strikes on top of you, followed by pounding rain and barrages of hailstones that force everyone to scurry for cover. Mud galore. But occasionally, through magical openings in the clouds, sunlight beams […]
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Natural gas leaks are dangerous and exacerbate climate change
Plus, enough gas has escaped infrastructure since 2010 to heat 170,000 homes for a year.
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EPA says fracking could contaminate drinking water
Feds identify no widespread problem but concede to insufficient data.
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Focusing in on arthropods of the West
Up-close portraits of jumping spiders, beetles, Mormon crickets and other creepy-crawlies essential to our ecosystems.
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Scarcity and survival reign in ‘The Water Knife’
A conversation with Paolo Bacigalupi about climate fiction, the power of water and his new novel.
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The fight for dirty water
On May 27, the Obama administration published a rule that restores the Clean Water Act’s intent and most of its teeth. Both had been extracted by the previous administration. This rule comes after meticulous vetting by lawyers, scientists and interested parties. Eighty-seven percent of the 1 million public comments were in favor of it. Nonetheless, […]
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Senate considers legislation to help the West store and conserve water
Twelve Western states have declared drought emergencies.
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I have seen the future, and it looks like Mad Max
How a post-apocalyptic action movie can help us ward off ecological disaster.
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A rocket scientist saved my farm
If I tell you details about how a rocket scientist saved my farm, it would probably just distract you, even though it’s true. Equally true is the fact that almost all farms can be saved and are worth saving, despite what you read about water-wasting agriculture. Like my father and grandfather before me, I’m a […]
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Ranch Diaries: Turning a mustang into a willing partner
What it’s like to start a horse who has a fear of ropes and an unhealthy sense of his own strength.
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Drilling is down, driving is up in wake of low petroleum prices
Demand increases, but rig counts plummet and workers continue to get laid off.
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Rants from the Hill: The adventures of Sir Rantsalot in the dead tree forest
On the virtues of cutting and burning wood.
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Weather dispatch from Wrangell, Alaska: Drought in the rainforest?
As Southwest states were pummeled with rain, Southeast Alaska dries out.
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Why is Montana giving its bison specialist the boot?
The state blames budget cuts as it demotes a longtime wildlife biologist.
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More waterways likely protected under new EPA rule
The controversial Clean Water Act rule protects tributaries with any sign of water, no matter the flow.
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The Pleistocene and the present don’t compute
March 15, 2025, For Immediate Release: “Rest assured, Pleistocene Parks Inc. is doing everything possible to recapture our escaped ice age megafauna. Please back away slowly from any African lion you encounter. Keep pets and children away from cheetahs. Do not approach camels, as they may kick, spit and bite. Unless you are in a […]
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Feds move to protect birds from oil pits and power lines
Planned regulations come as many Western migratory species experience steep declines.
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Northwest tribes are a growing obstacle to energy development
B.C. tribal members turned down $260K each in order to stop a gas terminal.
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Wyoming acts to discourage citizen scientists
I am a longtime and enthusiastic citizen scientist. As part of various citizen-science projects, I’ve banded birds, chased tiger beetles, counted frogs, monitored archaeological sites, and documented the lifecycles of plants in my backyard. So I am particularly interested in Wyoming’s new Data Trespass Bill, passed by legislators this March. While some say the bill […]