After coal waned, a community redefined itself. Will new leases turn back the clock?
Climate change
Posted inArticles
The flash drought brought misery, but did it change minds on climate change?
North Dakota ranchers rely on the rain — and last year the rains failed.
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8 ways Scott Pruitt suppressed science before he resigned
Under the EPA administrator, neither climate change nor science was a priority.
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In Southern California, the car still reigns
The anxieties of trying to lower emissions in Los Angeles’ sprawl.
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A fiery Fourth of July threatens Southwest economies
Wildfire, forest closures and canceled fireworks displays keep tourists at bay.
Posted inAugust 6, 2018: What Are We Doing Here?
Climate change is making it harder to revive damaged land
Instead of restoring the past, ecologists are increasingly focused on the future.
Posted inJuly 23, 2018: Pay for Prey
Saving baby Jo from the smoke
A mother grapples with her decision to flee the 416 Fire with her infant daughter.
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Rapid evolution saved the starfish
West Coast ochre stars make a remarkable reversal after a mass mortality event.
Posted inJune 25, 2018: Little Weed, Big Problem
An inventory of loss on the Los Angeles River
The city weighs revitalization of an unruly river, since transformed into a concrete ditch.
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Colorado follows California’s lead for cleaner cars
Fourteen states have now bucked the EPA to adopt stricter emissions standards.
Posted inAugust 6, 2018: What Are We Doing Here?
In the Southwest, ‘drought’ doesn’t tell the whole story
Why ‘aridification’ is a better term for our new, more parched reality.
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Extreme heat is killing people who lack shelter
Climate change is worsening the threats that homeless populations face.
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Aspen may stockpile water under its golf course
As climate change looms, towns look to store water without dams.
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The 416 Fire reminds us there’s no escape from climate change
Rumors that a popular tourist train sparked the fire have forced a reckoning.
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There’s nothing normal about ‘the new normal’
The phrase is the linguistic equivalent of a shrug.
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Who pays for the damage caused by climate change?
Three Colorado communities are suing to make oil companies open their wallets.
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Signs of climate change surround Montana fishermen
On the Big Hole River, livelihoods depend on healthy fish, but climate doubts abound.
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Cottonwoods host a world of microbes within their leaves
That community of fungi and bacteria may be the key to keeping plants healthy.
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Addressing climate grief makes you a badass, not a snowflake
Students studying the emotional toll of environmental loss faced a wave of vitriol.
Posted inMay 28, 2018: The River of Lost Souls
Some like it hot; the West’s unluckiest man; Phoenix’s future
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.