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Rating the Rockies, Part III: West has the renewable energy resources to power the region, now it needs the leadership to take the helm
May 20, 2008
Fact & Fiction and the Bookstore at the University of Montana offer a review of Dorothy Hinshaw Patent's "When the Wolves returned: Restoring Nature's Balance in Yellowstone."
June 4-6: Natural Resources Law Center's Shifting Baselines & New Meridians — Water, Resources, Landscapes and the Transformation of the American West," at the University of Colorado at Boulder Law School. Read a preview.
Proposed gold mine expansion divides Colorado town
Cripple Creek officials admit they have no authority to oppose a mining company's plan to expand its gold mining operations above the Colorado town, but they vowed to fight the plan anyway.
Denver Post; 05/21/2008
Market woes stall sales in Nevada 'New Urbanism' community
Inspirada was conceived as a planned community designed to be a city within a city in Henderson, but sales of homes in the New Urbanism community in Nevada have stalled, and promised retail development hasn't occurred yet.
Las Vegas Sun; 05/21/2008
Kennecott shelves plans for massive development in Utah
Salt Lake County officials said they were blindsided by Kennecott's abrupt withdrawal from negotiations over the company's plan to develop 41,000 acres on the Utah county's west bench, but Kennecott said negotiations had continued for more than two years with no results and the company had to make a business decision.
Salt Lake Tribune; 05/18/2008
Aspen officials admit mistake on affordable-housing cost estimate
On Tuesday, the Aspen City Council admitted that a 2005 campaign brochure underestimated taxpayers' share of the Colorado city's affordable-housing project by at least $73 million, but denied that the error was intentional.
The Aspen Times; 05/21/2008
Applicants for affordable housing in Wyo.'s Teton County set records
There are 1,200 families on the waiting list for affordable homes in Teton County, and that list is growing by about 200 annually, and with the median price for a home in the Wyoming community running about $1.79 million, that demand is unlikely to fall anytime soon.
Jackson Hole News & Guide; 05/22/2008
Voters in Colorado town overwhelmingly approve resort
A record 367 people cast their votes in Tuesday's special election in Minturn, with 87 percent of those voters approving the annexation of a private golf and ski resort planned above the Colorado town.
Denver Post; 05/22/2008
High grain prices, demand shipwreck Idaho's water-conservation program
Two years ago, a federal-state program began offering Idaho farmers $130 an acre to stop irrigating land and to plant cover crops, but the high price of corn, the increased demand for the crop due to the state's expanding dairy operations and a lessening threat of water curtailment has led to little interest in the program.
Twin Falls Times-News (AP); 05/23/2008
Economy, culture collide over proposed Navajo Nation power plant
A proposal to build yet another coal-fired power plant on the Navajo Nation in the Four Corners region has pitted economic interests against environmental and cultural concerns.
Deseret News (AP); 05/21/2008
Navajo researcher explores link between uranium, breast cancer
Stefanie Raymond-Whish, a molecular biologist at the University of Northern Arizona, watched her grandmother and mother struggle with breast cancer, and the Navajo woman and the team of researchers with whom she's working have discovered that uranium in low doses can act like estrogen, increasing the risk of breast cancer.
High Country News; 05/23/2008
National Bison Range in Montana celebrates 100-year anniversary
As estimated 40 million bison wandered over the North American continent when the United States was founded, but by 1889, William Hornaday counted the remaining bison and said 1,091 existed, and by 1900 the number in the wild had fallen to 100, and with the efforts of Salish tribal members, Montana residents and East Coast conservationists, including U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, a national refuge was established for the bison in Montana on May 23, 1908.
Missoulian; 05/22/2008
Montana tribe endorses, adopts Obama
At an event at the Crow Agency on Monday, Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama picked up the endorsement of the Crow Tribe and was adopted into the tribe, making the Illinois senator a member of the Whistling Water Clan and a child of the Newly Made Lodge.
Billings Gazette; 05/20/2008
BLM issues report on oil, gas resources
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management's Phase III inventory of onshore oil and gas resources mandated by the 2005 Energy Policy Act found a little more than 30 billion barrels of oil and 231 trillion cubic feet of natural gas on public lands, but not all of those resources can be developed due to environmental protections, private property or wildlife concerns or other reasons.
Salt Lake Tribune; 05/22/2008
GAO report: Four other Interior officials had role in ESA decisions
Robin Nazzaro of the Government Accountability Office told members of the House Natural Resources Committee that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service limited its investigation of endangered species decisions that may have been politically influenced by reviewing just those decisions affected by Julie MacDonald, but that at least four other Interior Department officials may have had a role in exerting political influence in ESA decisions.
Missoulian; 05/22/2008
Groups press USFWS to return desert owl to endangered list
The Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility have been waiting for more than a year for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to respond to their petition to return the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl to the federal endangered-species list, and the groups said they'll sue the federal agency if they don't get a response within the next 60 days.
Arizona Republic; 05/23/2008
Couple on the trail of secretive wolverines in Montana
A husband-and-wife team, Betsy Robinson and Steve Gehman, are two of the nation's top independent researchers on wolverines who spend their time trekking around Montana on the trail of one of the animal kingdom's most elusive animals.
Christian Science Monitor; 05/21/2008
BLM considers fencing open range in Wyoming
The Green Mountain Common Allotment covers 522,000 acres in Wyoming, and is one of the largest unfenced ranges in the nation, but years of drought and overgrazing have taken their toll on the land, and the Bureau of Land Management has proposed building nearly 100 miles of fencing to divide the land up into six smaller allotments.
Casper Star-Tribune; 05/19/2008
USFS says it needs $8.6M-bond for gold mine in Idaho
The U.S. Forest Service said Atlanta Gold Corp. will have to post a $1.3-million bond before it can begin to drill exploratory holes for a proposed underground gold mine in the Boise River watershed in Idaho, and another $7.3-million bond after exploration ends.
Idaho Statesman; 05/19/2008
Democrats once again squander chance to develop oilshale
The vote last week by Senate Democrats on the Appropriation's Committee to uphold a moratorium blocking regulations for developing oil shale deposits in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming was short-sighted at best, and did nothing but put the industry in limbo at a time when forward progress is needed.
Denver Rocky Mountain News; 05/20/2008
Kane County needs to end its quixotic fight on roads in Utah monument
Enough is enough -- Kane County commissioners need to accept the fact that the Utah county has no claim to roads and trails in Utah's Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument and take down the 39 signs county personnel illegally posted on those roads, and close the door on the taxpayer-funded lawsuit.
Salt Lake Tribune; 05/21/2008
Flood warnings underscore need for streamside setbacks in Montana
Ravalli County officials have set back the deadline for streamside setbacks until Oct. 1, and given the high water seen in area streams and rivers, perhaps a spring surrounded by sandbags will make residents of that Montana county and others, more aware of the need to build homes farther away from waterways.
Missoulian; 05/19/2008
Simpson's move on Idaho wilderness bill a crap shoot
U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson has spent years crafting his Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act, carefully balancing environmental and economic interests, and his recent amendments to the bill could upset the fragile compromise he's worked so hard to create.
Twin Falls Times-News; 05/21/2008
The United States doesn't need foreign nuclear waste -- period
At a U.S. House subcommittee hearing on legislation that would ban the importation of foreign nuclear waste, Michigan Rep. Fred Upton painted the bill as a "not-in-my-backyard" measure, but Upton is wrong, it is legislation that will keep nuclear waste in the country where it is produced and for that reason alone, Congress should pass it.
Salt Lake Tribune; 05/23/2008
Arizona city expands immigration enforcement
Under a new policy announced Thursday, Phoenix law enforcement officers may contact Immigrations and Customs Enforcement if they suspect a person they arrest may be in the country illegally, a policy change that is anticipated to result in an increase of the number of illegal immigrants deported from Arizona.
Arizona Republic; 05/23/2008
Colorado Democrats pick Udall for U.S. Senate run
U.S. Rep. Mark Udall is the Democratic Party's nominee for Colorado's U.S. Senate seat left vacant by Sen. Wayne Allard's announced retirement; Udall is expected to face Republican Bob Schaffer, who served three terms in Congress.
Denver Post; 05/18/2008
McCain visit Monday kicks off week of political activity in New Mexico
Arizona Sen. John McCain, the Republican Party's presumptive presidential nominee, will be in Albuquerque on Monday, the first of a number of political events in New Mexico, with President Bush planning a stop in the N.M. city on Tuesday, and Michele Obama, the wife of Democratic presidential contender Sen. Barack Obama, planning a couple of stops in the state next week as well. You may have to view an ad to read this article.
Albuquerque Journal; 05/21/2008
Three potential running mates to meet with McCain this weekend
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida, and Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana will all visit with Arizona Sen. John McCain at his ranch near Sedona this weekend, suggesting that the Republican Party's presumptive nominee is gearing up his search for a running mate.
New York Times; 05/22/2008
U.S. Senate's war-funding bill contains funds for Northwest counties
Oregon's congressional delegation launched a two-track method to maintain funding to rural counties in Oregon, Idaho, Washington, California, Montana and other Western states that lost revenue when logging declined in federal forests, and Sen. Ron Wyden's measure to do that passed the Senate along with the $165-billion funding bill for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan; Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio's bill to extend the payments for four years will be voted on by the U.S. House next month.
Portland Oregonian; 05/23/2008
Colorado governor signs uranium mining bill into law
Companies that mine uranium in Colorado must now clean groundwater to pre-mining quality once mining operations cease after Gov. Bill Ritter signed House Bill 1161 into law; the governor has not yet acted on Senate Bill 228, that increases state oversight of all mining operations.
Greeley Tribune; 05/22/2008
Sale of energy leases in B.C. sets record
British Columbia received $441.65 million from Thursday's auction of oil and gas leases, the largest ever for that Canadian province, and the third-largest auction of mineral rights ever in Western Canada.
Calgary Herald; 05/23/2008
Seattle, Austin provide economic lessons for Phoenix
Neither Seattle nor Austin have been hit hard by the ongoing economic slowdown that is blanketing the nation, while Phoenix has been slammed, providing real-time education about the folly of building an economy on one industry. An analysis by the Arizona Republic
Arizona Republic; 05/18/2008
Colorado oil, gas commission approves new industry regulations
Despite persistent lobbying efforts by the Colorado Oil and Gas Association, the Colorado Petroleum Association, several energy companies, some counties and the Colorado Association of Home Builders to delay new rules on drilling operations in the state, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission voted 6-3 to implement two laws passed last year that add weight to public health, environmental and wildlife concerns when making decisions about energy development.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (AP); 05/23/2008
BLM, USFS begins scoping process for Wyoming-Idaho power line
Much of the route of Gateway West, a proposed transmission plan built to carry wind-generated power from Wyoming to Idaho, crosses public lands, and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service have begun the "scoping" portion of the environmental impact statement, with nine public hearings scheduled in the two states in June.
Casper Star-Tribune; 05/20/2008
Montana board OKs assessment of coal tracts
The Montana Land Board, consisting of the state's top five elected officials, voted unanimously to get a market appraisal of the state's 550 million tons of coal, the first step in the process to developing those resources.
Helena Independent Record; 05/20/2008
Rising prices pump up oil, natural gas production in Utah
Natural gas production in Utah set a record in 2007, with 385 billion cubic feet produced, and oil production reached a 10-year high of 19.5 million barrels, and analysts said production levels this year will be as high as last year or higher.
Salt Lake Tribune; 05/21/2008
Colorado cracks down on RV-licensing scofflaws
Colorado officials said they anticipated collecting about $3 million from the 134 owners of recreational vehicles who purchased and registered those vehicles out of state to avoid paying sales taxes and to pay lower registration fees.
Denver Post; 05/22/2008
California utility asks FERC to step into power line dispute with Arizona
After Arizona regulators denied Southern California Edison's request to build a 230-mile power transmission line between Phoenix and Palm Springs, the utility company asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to begin the process to override Arizona's denial, and if FERC complies, it would be the first such decision under new legislation that established "national interest" energy corridors.
Los Angeles Times; 05/19/2008
Washington governor praises U.S.-Canada salmon pact
The agreement reached between the United States and Canada on reducing salmon fishing to help boost salmon numbers earned the endorsement of Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire, Native officials and environmental groups, although some groups said the treaty didn't go far enough.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer; 05/23/2008
USFWS releases final recovery plan for spotted owl
Conservation groups immediately criticized the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's final recovery plan for the spotted owl, which was released Friday, because the groups said the plan does too little to protect critical habitat for the species.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (AP); 05/16/2008
U.S. appeals court strikes down Washington state's ban on nuke waste
A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found that Washington state's voter-passed initiative that banned the importation of any new nuclear waste to the Hanford nuclear complex until the Department of Energy completes cleanup operations there was in violation of federal law.
Spokane Spokesman-Review; 05/22/2008
Italy announces plan to return to nuclear energy
Two decades after a definitive public referendum shuttered all of Italy's nuclear power plants, the Italian government announced it would begin building new nuclear power plants, although the country has yet to develop a plan to rid itself of the 235 tons of spent nuclear fuel left over from its last nuclear age. Editor's note: EnergySolutions is seeking clearance to import nuclear waste from Italy for disposal at its facility in Utah.
New York Times; 05/23/2008
Gov. Palin wants $500M to subsidize Alaska-Canada pipeline
Gov. Sarah Palin campaigned on a promise to complete of the 1,715-mile natural gas pipeline from Alaska's gas fields on its North Slope to Alberta, Canada, where it would hook into existing pipelines that carry gas to Canada and the United States, and on Thursday she proposed providing $500 million in matching funds to TransCanada to build the pipeline.
New York Times; 05/23/2008
National housing index shows Utah divide in housing prices
The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight's latest report released Thursday said that the national home-price index reported its sharpest decline in its 17-year history in the first quarter of 2008; that Wyoming had the greatest year-over-year increase in prices of 6.34 percent, and Utah reported an overall increase of 5.58 percent during the first quarter, even though the region around St. George saw an 3.65 percent decline in prices between the first quarter of 2007 and the same period in 2008.
Deseret News; 05/23/2008
Index: Colorado city second in nation in home-price increases
The housing-price index maintained by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight is generally considered the most comprehensive in the nation, and Thursday's report found that Colorado's housing market fared better than the nation's as a whole, with Grand Junction posting the second highest pricing appreciation among U.S. cities in the nation.
Denver Rocky Mountain News; 05/23/2008
Flagstaff bright spot in Arizona housing market
The report issued Thursday by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight found that the average price of a home in Arizona fell 5.5 percent during the first quarter of 2008 compared to the same period a year ago, but the value of homes in Flagstaff fell just 1.8 percent during that time.
Arizona Daily Sun; 05/23/2008
In the West, housing prices in far-flung suburbs fall the most
According to at least one report, as the price of gasoline rose above $2 a gallon and beyond, housing prices in areas far away from urban cores, such as Snoqualmie, well outside Seattle in Washington state, and Riverside and San Bernardino, distant from Los Angeles, fell more than housing in urban cores.
Christian Science Monitor; 05/21/2008
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