In the Rockies today, U.S. Forest Service officials said they like Idaho's roadless plan, and Wyoming and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sign a pact to work together to keep species off the endangered species list.
The U.S. Forest Service has completed its review of Idaho's proposal to manage federal forest lands in the state, and agency officials said they found much to like, and now they'll put the proposal out for public comment.
In Wyoming, where a federal decision on sage grouse could have considerable implications on energy development, the state and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service formalized their working relationship with a written agreement on Wednesday to coordinate efforts to keep species such as the sage grouse off the federal endangered species list.
Also in the Rockies today, an Idaho tribe's decision to exercise fishing rights granted under an 1885 treaty is causing concern about how that decision could affect sport fishing in the state.
And in Nevada, where state and federal officials have long disagreed about the suitability of Yucca Mountain for a nuclear waste repository, a new report raises another obstacle to the federal government's plan.
Rockies today
USFS tweaks Idaho's roadless plan
The U.S. Forest Service released its draft environmental impact statement on the plan written by former Gov. and now Lt. Gov. Jim Risch for Idaho's federal roadless forest lands, and the federal agency said it will schedule more than a dozen meetings around the state in January and February to gather public comments on the plan.
Idaho Statesman; Dec. 20
Wyoming, USFWS sign pact to coordinate species protection
Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal, Wyoming Game and Fish Department Director Terry Cleveland, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acting Regional Director Jay Slack signed off on a deal that formalizes an existing agreement between the federal agency and the state to coordinate efforts to keep species off the federal endangered species list; Arizona is the only other state in the union to have a similar agreement with the USFWS.
Casper Star-Tribune (AP); Dec. 20
Idaho tribe's plan to use gillnets on Snake, Clearwater river raises concerns
For the first time in years, the Nez Perce announced they would exercise their tribal treaty rights to harvest hatchery steelhead in the Clearwater and Snake rivers, and that the Idaho tribe would seek a multiyear agreement with the National Marine Fisheries Service to continue commercial gillnet fishing.
Idaho Statesman; Dec. 20
Review board says revamped Yucca Mountain study worse than original
The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board, a group of scientists that reports directly to Congress, said a reworked water infiltration model assembled by DOE and Sandia National Laboratories to estimate the rates of water seepage from the surface of Yucca Mountain down 1,000 feet to where the federal government wants to store nuclear waste was not as solid as the research done originally.
Las Vegas Review-Journal; Dec. 20
Utah groups take coal-power concerns to Nevada governor
A coalition of about 20 groups in Utah, concerned about plans to build three new coal-fired power in Nevada, said they would ask Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons to consider developing alternative forms of energy to fill the state's power needs.
Reno Gazette-Journal (AP); Dec. 20
EPA: Montana dam work unlikely cause of well failures in E. Missoula
East Missoula is not within the boundary of the computer model estimates of the area that could be affected by the drawdown of Milltown Reservoir, where the Environmental Protection Agency is conducting a $100 million Superfund cleanup project that includes removal of the Milltown Dam, and EPA officials said they doubted that well problems experienced by some East Missoula residents are related to the work, but if investigation proves that they are, the EPA will pay to fix their wells.
Missoulian; Dec. 20
Study: Utah's new flat tax rate will lower taxes for 90 percent of Utahns
A University of Utah study said Utah's new 5 percent flat income-tax rate that kicks in on Jan. 1 means that the state will no longer have the least-progressive income tax in the Mountain West states, a ranking it used to share with Colorado.
Salt Lake Tribune; Dec. 20
Montana development's conservation claims under scrutiny
Wade Dokken says his Ameya Preserve will be the "most sustainable community every built," allowing only 300 homes on 1,500 acres of land on a 9,500-acre parcel near Livingston, conserving the remainder acres for wildlife, but the development will also consist of second, and possibly third or fourth, homes for ultra-wealthy clientele, and the project has ignited a lot of debate in the Montana community. A perspective.
NewWest.net; Dec. 20
Opinion
Regional senators are wrong: guns aren't needed in national parks
The Interior Department's two decade ban on guns in national parks and wildlife refuges hasn't created a police state thus far, so a measure by 47 senators, including those from Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, to end that ban is bewildering.
Casper Star-Tribune; Dec. 20
Reid should drop his ill-advised fight against coal-fired plants in Nevada
Nevada needs power, even more power than the proposed coal-fired power plants will provide when, and if, they go online as projected in the next five years, and it's time Sen. Harry Reid abandons his fight against those plants, and side with the hard-working Nevadans who need a break from high power costs, rather than the Learjet liberals who power up his campaign chest.
Las Vegas Review-Journal; Dec. 20
Colorado county made a good decision on uranium mines
The Mesa County Commissioners' approval of a plan to reopen two uranium mines in their Colorado county was a good one, given the nation's quest for cleaner power, and the commission's imposition of travel restrictions on trucks adequately addressed travel concerns.
Grand Junction Sentinel; Dec. 20
Beyond the region
EPA says energy bill makes 17 states' emissions standards moot
The Environmental Protection Agency said California's standards on vehicle emissions, along with the 16 other states that have adopted similar standards, are pre-empted by federal authority.
New York Times; Dec. 20
California utility first in nation to buy wave-generated electricity
Pacific Gas & Electric Co. won't get electricity from Canada's Finavera Renewables Inc.'s project in the waters off the coast of Northern California's Humboldt County until 2010.
Los Angeles Times; Dec. 18
In depth
Federal spending bill stuffed with 9,000 earmarks
There is bipartisan agreement that the $555-billion spending bill passed by Congress would not have passed had it not been for lawmakers' pet projects, about 9,000--or roughly 16 for each member of Congress-- contained within the bill, including $7.5 million to stage the Special Olympics in Idaho. An analysis.
New York Times; Dec. 20
Denver, St. Paul get $50 million in federal funds for 2008 conventions
Denver and St. Paul, Minn., the hosting cities for the Democratic and Republican, respectively, national conventions in 2008, will each get $50 million, courtesy of the massive spending bill passed by Congress Wednesday and expected to be signed into law by President Bush.
Denver Post; Dec. 20
Montana projects snare $111 million in federal funds
When President Bush signs the $555-billion spending bill into law, $111 million will flow into Montana to fund more than 120 projects including more than $20 million for two water projects in northern and eastern Montana, $10 million for road projects, and $4.4 million for land acquisition at the Sun Ranch for conservation purposes.
Helena Independent Record; Dec. 20
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