Government-issued maps offer a promise for safely exploring our public lands, but they no longer reflect the reality of what’s actually on the ground.
Wildfire
Posted inArticles
Digging out in the Palisades Fire burn zone
Portraits of the workers shoring up a broken world.
Posted inArticles
A year after the Eaton Fire, permit delays keep Black families from returning
Once known for its trees and community, Altadena is now a test of who — and what — gets to come back after disaster.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Inside California’s wild Christmas tree harvest
Each winter, migrant crews climb into the Sierra to cut wild silvertip firs, a fragile tradition now imperiled by wildfire, climate change, and tightening immigration laws.
Posted inArticles
Skimpy snow makes life worse for skiers — and everyone else
The sport may seem selfish, but it reminds us why good snowpack matters.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Congress made it easier to ignore grazing’s harm to public lands
Federal law requires agencies to review the environmental impacts of grazing, but government employees allege the system is riddled with loopholes.
Posted inArticles
After Trump cuts, seeds sit in the warehouse
Western groups lose federal grants for urgent restoration and conservation projects.
Posted inNovember 2025: Precious Metalheads
For rural Californians, unreliable power has become the norm
Years ago, the state’s largest utility rolled out a power outage program designed to reduce wildfires. Customers now experience thousands of outages a year.
Posted inArticles
Fix Our Forests Act divides environmental community
But it’s a rare instance of bipartisan lawmaking and the biggest wildfire legislation in recent history.
Posted inArticles
Sen. Mike Lee’s new bill permits ‘tactical infrastructure’ in wilderness areas
The Border Lands Conservation Act gives the Department of Homeland Security the power to waive myriad federal laws, including the Wilderness Act, under the pretense of border security.
Posted inOctober 2025: Limits to Growth
Ventura County is turning former farmland into affordable housing for farmworkers
This California county has some of the nation’s strictest protections for agricultural land, but developers are using a new exemption to house people who work the land.
Posted inArticles
Shutdown causes ‘confusion’ across the Forest Service
Prescribed burns are on hold during shutdown while logging continues.
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The dismantling of the Forest Service
The Trump administration’s plans would remake the agency and public lands. The deadline to comment is Sept. 30.
Posted inArticles
Firefighters question leaders’ role in ICE raid near Bear Gulch Fire
Firefighting veterans believe the management team overseeing fire crews played a key role in handing team members over to immigration authorities.
Posted inArticles
How a Utah wildfire created its own tornado
Firefighters were caught in a pyro-vortex last month on the Deer Creek Fire.
Posted inArticles
The race to protect homes from speculators post-wildfire
Around the West, community land trusts are helping people recover from disaster — and prepare for the next one.
Posted inArticles
Wildfire is a growing threat to the West’s water systems
How fire and water managers can prepare.
Posted inArticles
‘Help is not on the way’
As fire season ramps up, thousands of Forest Service firefighting positions are vacant.
Posted inAugust 2025: Fire Culture
A hotshot’s search for belonging among the flames
A wildland firefighter reckons with the male-dominated culture found on the fireline.
