HCN prides itself on delving into messy news stories, and in this issue, we do so quite literally, digging into the garbage business via a controversial proposed landfill in Oregon. Life at the Forest Service is equally messy in a different way, with biologists facing uncertainty and chaos as they prepare for the summer’s fieldwork. But there’s also good news: The Siletz Tribe plans to reintroduce sea otters to the waters off Oregon and Northern California, and a worker-owned solar co-op is bringing new energy — and not just electric — to its community. Despite all the obstacles, wolves are returning to the West, and some Western Republicans are joining with Democrats to fight proposed public-land sales. In Lisa Elmaleh’s deeply moving photographs, we come fact-to-face with the migrants struggling to cross the border and reach the “promised land.” A variety of artists are finding inspiration in the life and death of glaciers, and a pioneering lesbian photographer merged with the Earth through her artwork.
Where the garbage goes
Amid massive rollbacks of federal environmental protections, a community battling the expansion of a local landfill seeks to safeguard its own backyard – and everyone else’s.
The promised land remains elusive for asylum seekers
Some people stuck at the U.S.-Mexico border are forced to risk their lives attempting to cross the desert.
How worker-ownership helped California Solar create good jobs
For small solar companies, cooperative structures can build resiliency, wealth and worker power.
Sea otters to get another chance in Oregon and Northern California
The Siletz Tribe received a $1.56 million grant to reintroduce Xvlh-t’vsh.
Wolves return to the West
After being driven to near-extinction, these animals, and the politics around them, are back.
After Anchorage
A poem by Joan Kane.
The enduring appeal of nude desert self-portraits
Posing as rocks and trees, photographer Laura Aguilar influenced others by becoming one with the landscape.
‘Learn whose land you are on’
#iamthewest: Giving voice to the people that make up communities in the region.
Truck nuts, pinniped pups and recidivist meat smugglers
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
Don’t turn away from news
You can’t protect the people, places and things you love if you don’t know that they are threatened.
HCN welcomes our newest board member
… and reporters attend the Society of Environmental Journalists’ 2025 conference.
Letters to the Editor, June 2025
Comments from readers.
How to preserve a glacier’s legacy
Artists are called to document the existence, and disappearance, of glacier.
As Trump comes after research, Forest Service scientists keep working
Scientists describe how they’re preparing for the upcoming field season despite the challenges.
Threats to public lands called ‘outrageous slap in the face’
Broad support for public lands is forcing some Republicans to break with the White House while advocates rally to save them from sales.