Meridian, Idaho, will host a high-visibility merger
Oct. 2, when Rep. Helen Chenoweth, 61, weds Wayne Hage, 62.
Chenoweth is famous for fighting federal protection of endangered
species and wilderness (HCN, 9/28/98). Her betrothed, a rancher
from Tonopah, Nev., has battled the Forest Service in court for
almost a decade over grazing (HCN, 10/30/95). Invitations went out
to 11,000 people, but since the church can only accommodate 1,200,
a wide-screen television will let overflow guests follow the
nuptials.
A proposal to fill in an old uranium
mine using low-level radioactive waste has proved too hot to
handle. The Dawn Mining Co. in eastern Washington wanted to use
mildly radioactive dirt from around the country in the cleanup of
its mine site on the Spokane Indian Reservation (HCN, 1/19/98).
Local opposition has convinced the company to use clean dirt from
the surrounding area instead. “This is a big deal. We’re very
pleased,” John Erickson of the Washington Department of Health told
the Spokane Spokesman-Review.
Another big deal in
northern New Mexico has environmental groups applauding. After two
years of negotiations, the owners of the Baca Ranch have agreed to
sell their 95,000-acre property to the federal government for $101
million (HCN, 8/3/98). Congress has already approved a $40 million
down payment for the cattle ranch, which is about 60 miles
northwest of Santa Fe in the Jemez
Mountains.
Environmentalists are also throwing a
party in Crested Butte, Colo., where Cyprus Amax’s molybdenum mine
proposal has hit a roadblock. In early September, a judge told the
company it couldn’t have the water it needs to mine 29 million tons
of molybdenum near the ski town. Crested Butte is surrounded by one
of the world’s largest deposits of molybdenum, and local
environmental groups have been fighting off Amax since the 1970s
(HCN, 11/23/98).
Not so pleased are Jody and
Brian Bea, the Washington couple who will soon be dismantling their
dream home. Two years ago, they started to build a 4,000
square-foot house on the northern side of the Columbia River Gorge,
just across the river from a national scenic area (HCN, 2/15/99).
The federal Columbia River Gorge Commission said the cliffside
house was an eyesore. In late August, a judge agreed. The Beas will
now have to move their home.
* Michelle Nijhuis
and Karen Mockler
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline The Wayward West.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
