Companies and investors are trying to survive a collapsing U.S. coal market.
Politics
Posted inArticles
Federal coal leasing needs a major overhaul
The winds of change are blowing hard across our Western coalfields. Competition from cheaper fuels such as natural gas, wind and solar has dampened domestic demand for coal. This trend ‒ plus a bust in export markets after a brief boom ‒ has driven five major coal companies into bankruptcy court. There, they seek protection […]
Posted inJuly 25, 2016: Salmon Power
Latest: The BLM to study surgical sterilization of wild horses
As ever, changes to the agency’s wild horse policy have sparked controversy.
Posted inJuly 25, 2016: Salmon Power
Latest: EPA won’t regulate logging road runoff
EPA says the Clean Water Act is enough to ensure stream health.
Posted inJuly 25, 2016: Salmon Power
Land transfer battles rage on, county by county
The American Lands Council supports local control but keeps its list of member counties secret.
Posted inArticles
This year’s GOP platform pushes federal land transfers
“Returning” lands to states has long been a party plank and a shifting political landscape could open the door.
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There’s no Brexit from our climate problems
A rant against the mindless pleasure of simply smashing something to see what happens.
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Meet Utah’s first transgender candidate for US Senate
Democratic candidate Misty Snow is progressive, transgender and, she says, increasingly representative of Utah.
Posted inArticles
Firearm safety group targets suicide at the source
As Western states outpace the national average on gun suicides, one group looks to sellers for help.
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We should be proud of delisting grizzlies
The bear is a huge conservation success story, and it shows that the Endangered Species Act works.
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Homegrown anti-government militias threaten public safety
As we saw during the Bundy Ranch standoff in 2014 and earlier this year at a wildlife refuge in Oregon, violent extremism is not limited to war-torn countries thousands of miles away from the United States. Armed militias have expanded in size and sophistication and now present a threat to public safety and national security. […]
Posted inArticles
The Park Service doesn’t need corporate sponsorship. It needs proper funding.
When I was a child, I remember passing through any number of national park entrance stations in our family station wagon. I remember the historic stone kiosks where the rangers greeted us, and my excitement as we began the slow drive toward the greatest wonders of nature. Visiting a national park felt a little like […]
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How will Trump act on conservation and public lands?
Presidential campaigns offer a sneak peek into natural resource policies.
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Judge strikes down BLM fracking rule
Enviros hope for a successful appeal, but the path could be long and windy.
Posted inJune 27, 2016: The New Advocates
A new generation of warriors for the wild
Sierra Club rec head Stacy Bare sees a role for veterans in conservation.
Posted inJune 27, 2016: The New Advocates
Meet the group that’s turning artists into nature’s advocates
In the backcountry, an experiment in using art to elevate environmental issues.
Posted inArticles
Don’t just save the Grand Canyon. Save the wider region, too.
We think we’ve saved the Grand Canyon. We established a national park that is supposed to remain “forever unimpaired,” as the Park Service’s enabling legislation put it. But the Grand Canyon is so deeply enmeshed in a spider web of connections to its watershed that a lot of work needs to be done to keep […]
Posted inArticles
Arizona Rep. Grijalva targets extremism on public lands
Dozens of high-profile former federal employees sign a letter urging Congress to address Sagebrush Insurgency threats.
Posted inJune 13, 2016: Water to Dust
How a Utah county silenced Native American voters — and how Navajos are fighting back
A series of lawsuits could help counteract decades of racist practices.