This issue takes us into Western communities that are facing serious challenges. In White Mesa, Utah, the nation’s only active uranium mill wants to import radioactive waste from overseas over the fierce objections of its next-door neighbors, the Ute Mountain Utes. Meanwhile, in Shasta Vista, California, cannabis-growing Hmong Americans defied evacuation orders to fight wildfires because they don’t trust the hostile county they live in. Climate change threatens Hatch, New Mexico’s famous green chiles, as well as the snow that sustains Rocky Mountain ski towns (among other things). We look into why reducing methane emissions matters. Still, wildfire experts see reasons for hope, and some communities are coming together: When Alaska’s Yukon River saw dismal salmon runs, other Native villages helped feed hard-hit communities. Black and Native communities are discussing their complex relationship, and Chuck Sams might become the first Native American to lead the National Park Service. Finally, archaeologists are starting to realize that Indigenous people have been around longer than academics have, after all.
Raising fun — and funds — across the West
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The nation’s last uranium mill plans to import Estonia’s radioactive waste
Utah says the White Mesa Mill isn’t contaminating groundwater, but its neighbor, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, disagrees.
A Hostile Country
Thank you to Paige Blankenbuehler for her recent article concerning wolf dispersal and Wyoming’s Green River corridor (“A Hostile Country,” October 2021). One passage I found particularly disturbing for its hypocrisy was the characterization of wolves as “vicious” and killing for fun. Although I am no expert in wolf behavior, the idea that they kill…
Behind the wire with a fence ecologist
Big cheers for Michael Parks, HCN and the passionate Westerners who are working hard to remove the barriers to wildlife (“Behind the wire with a fence ecologist,” October 2021). I am really excited to see a hopeful tale of desperately needed action to give wildlife back their land. If this is the beginning of a greater…
Don’t miss Halito
HCN readers are missing out if they have not yet seen editorial intern B. ‘Toastie’ Oaster’s delightful video summaries of new articles each Friday (“Halito from High Country News”). But “summary” is a poor descriptor because what Oaster is really crafting are invitations that engage though clarity, wonder and wit. The Oct. 1 episode was…
Making a Home of It
“Making a Home of It” in the October High Country News was sad and frightening on several levels. Our public lands are not a solution for “homeless” people or those who don’t follow the rules. These are problems the U.S. Congress and the states must fix by requiring the wealthy to pay for decent affordable housing…
The best read
For my 85 years of avid reading, I don’t believe that I’ve ever read anything that I have enjoyed so much as “A Hostile Country.” The female wolf’s trek was fascinating — not really a happy ending, but so entertaining. Thank you so much. Joan HamburgerTucson, Arizona This article appeared in the print edition of…
The winnowing of winter
As the climate crisis worsens, what will happen to snow?
The Public Health Officer Emergency
Your impressively thorough article, “The Public Health Officer Emergency” (October 2021), was distressing. The defiant attitudes and mean-spirited tactics of the vociferous opponents of professional medical guidance concerning the COVID-19 epidemic are chilling. They apparently do not care about protection of their fellow citizens, their own personal vulnerability or the tragic impacts on overwhelmed medical…
On being grateful
Food justice in a time of thanksgiving.
The time of the Indigenous critic has arrived
I enjoyed reading Jason Asenap’s essay regarding the present state of Native filmmaking and production (“The time of the Indigenous critic has arrived,” October 2021). He landed on some critical points, especially concerning the Indigenous filmmakers and artists working in a predominantly and historically white-run business. Those lines are now being blurred. Just as Asenap has written, learning to live…
Why fire experts are hopeful
Wildfire scientists dispel common misconceptions about forest management, detailing what needs to change and why it’s urgent.
Why reducing methane emissions matters
What you can’t see can hurt.
The ways Afro-Indigenous people are asked to navigate their communities
Two leading scholars discuss the complex relationship between Black and Native people.
Wiggling ice worms; historical matchmaking; bizarre Utah politics
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
Alaska Native villages band together to keep the Yukon River’s wild salmon afloat
‘As a unified voice, we are unstoppable — and we can manage the river better.’
Decolonizing Idaho’s road signs
A new effort will add Indigenous history to historical markers across the state.
Can Hatch green chiles outlast the climate crisis?
Growers of New Mexico’s iconic crop wrestle with drought, water rights and labor shortages.
How tribal leaders want Chuck Sams to lead the Park Service
The Umatilla leader would be the first Native person in charge of the agency, which has a thorny history with tribes.
Hmong Americans in Northern California fight wildfire — and distrust
Wary of local authorities, a community forms an ad-hoc firefighting force to defend its property.
The hidden fires
Keeping honest about what we burn and why.
Afghan refugees find a home in the West
A resettlement agency in Twin Falls, Idaho, prepares for newcomers.
The White Sands discovery only confirms what Indigenous people have said all along
Once again, the media has excluded Indigenous peoples from our own story.