Old-timers still remember when winters in mountain towns meant something more than just catering to hordes of skiers. Sure, those winters were tough; the days were short and cold, and drifting snow restricted outdoor activities and even closed some businesses and high mountain roads. But mountain winters had a positive side, too, for they were […]
Climate change
Posted inOctober 17, 2005: The Ghosts of Yosemite
The Ghosts of Yosemite
Scientists from the past bring us a message about the future
Posted inOctober 17, 2005: The Ghosts of Yosemite
States lead charge against global warming
Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue’s feature story, “The Ghosts of Yosemite.” From California to Colorado and from Washington to New Mexico, Western states, tired of federal inaction on climate change, are saddling up to tackle the issue on their own. Whether it means deciding that a certain percentage of their electrical […]
Posted inWotr
Lessons from the mountains to the stormy seas
Ten months ago, I was in the Indian Himalayas, cut off from the media connections most Americans take for granted. On Christmas Day, a young neighbor from the village, who taught math and spoke limited English, stopped by to ask if I’d heard the news: A huge wave had slammed many parts of Southeast Asia, […]
Posted inWotr
Topsy turvy weather may be a sign of worse to come
We roll into camp at Lassen Volcanic National Park in California around 4 p.m., tumble from the car eager to stretch our legs, and are soon scrambling to dig winter clothing out of the heap of gear and garb that swamped the back seat somewhere in Oregon. The weather ought to be at least warm, […]
Posted inJuly 25, 2005: The Many Faces of Richard Pombo
Outgrowing the Earth: The Food Security Challenge in an Age of Falling Water Tables and Rising Temperatures
Outgrowing the Earth: The Food Security Challenge in an Age of Falling Water Tables and Rising Temperatures Lester R. Brown, 272 pages, hardcover $27.95, paperback $15.95: W.W. Norton, 2005. Lester Brown, the environmental world’s leading prophet of doom, brings us his latest nonfiction disaster thriller. As world populations boom, farmers reach deeper and deeper underground […]
Posted inWotr
Seattle’s mayor leads the nation on global warming
Early this year, while the Pacific Northwest endured one of the driest winters on record, 141 countries ratified the Kyoto Protocol, the international agreement to help curb global warming. The United States was not among them. To Mayor Greg Nickels of Seattle, the national no-show provided an opportunity for action on a smaller scale. “Local […]
Posted inJune 27, 2005: Reflections on a Divided Land
This mayor sees a different shade of green
NAME Greg Nickels VOCATION Mayor of Seattle, D, elected in 2001 AGE 49 NOTED FOR Starting a mayoral “green team” to combat global warming HE SAYS “If we expect (people in) the community to change their habits, we need to lead by example.” Early this year, while the Pacific Northwest endured one of the […]
Posted inWotr
Buying used gets him enthused
Westerners are packrats. Blame it on the availability of flea markets or just the size of our backyards. My house is no exception, except that most of my stuff comes from the midden heap, which doesn’t mean I’ve been pilfering artifacts from sacred sites. The Anasazi used to dump their trash much like many of […]
Posted inWotr
Why should the Arctic Refuge matter to the ski industry?
Why would the 19 million acres of wilderness that make up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the potential oil beneath it, plus its resident herd of caribou, matter at all to the ski industry? Sure, the refuge in Alaska is wild and beautiful, it’s pristine, it’s a crown jewel of wilderness. We in the ski […]
Posted inWotr
Spring comes grudgingly to Wyoming’s high desert
Although I expect more heartless wind and freezing nights, I think winter’s tight grip has been loosened. Summer lies ahead.
Posted inApril 18, 2005: What Happened to Winter?
Climate model may help farmers know what to grow
What farmer hasn’t wished for a weather-predicting crystal ball? Now, growers in the Yakima Valley have the next best thing: a high-tech climate model that may benefit the entire West. The climate model is adapted from a West-wide model developed by the Department of Energy, which predicts that, over the next 50 years, Western snowpack […]
Posted inApril 18, 2005: What Happened to Winter?
What happened to winter?
A bizarre season leaves Westerners wondering what’s next
Posted inWotr
Spring
My friends warn me of the perils of moving to the mountains outside Boise, Idaho, in December, just as winter rolls into the Northwest. “You’ll get depressed,” they say. “And don’t expect to see us until spring.” My friends are city folk. The worst they can imagine is snow piling in the drive and power […]
Posted inWotr
Those who choose risk should bear the cost
Americans are not generally regarded as fatalistic. Christianity, the prevalent religion in America, teaches that individuals possess free will and are therefore responsible for their actions. The nation was founded and shaped by immigrants intent on building new lives in which they — not oppressive governments, intolerant clerics or class distinctions — would determine their […]
Posted inWotr
The secret of Wyoming winters is the snow-eating chinook
I’m often asked by relatives and friends back East how I stand the winters in northwestern Wyoming. I put on a stoic facade and tell them: It’s tough, but we Cody folks can suck it up. What I don’t mention is that an average of 300 days of sunshine annually isn’t hard to take, nor […]
Posted inWotr
Where did the Northwest’s moisture go?
For years I’ve hated the winter rains of Oregon’s Willamette Valley — hated the way they start in late October and continue well into April. Soaking the landscape and leaving everything wrinkled and rotted, the rain was something to hide from, something to make me hold my breath, shut my eyes and imagine a drier […]
Posted inFebruary 7, 2005: The Asphalt Graveyard
California’s farmers ditch dirty diesel pumps
California’s two biggest utility companies want to help farmers ditch their polluting diesel pumps to comply with air-quality crackdowns. In the process, the companies stand to gain thousands of new customers. In November, Pacific Gas and Electric Company and Southern California Edison submitted a proposal to the California Public Utilities Commission — which authorizes all […]
Posted inWotr
Global warming brings a clash of civilizations
Global warming is not just another issue in a long line of environmental problems that have received attention starting with Earth Day 1970. With honor and respect to all the great environmental victories, and to the people who fought for them, we feel that global warming will take a revolution in the way we see […]
Posted inJanuary 24, 2005: Written in the Rings
Written in the Rings
Tree rings reveal the climate of the past— and help foretell the future. Their message? Get ready for hot, dry times.