In the Rockies today, as snow falls on portions of the Rocky Mountain West, Colorado's Gov. Bill Ritter declares a state of emergency as wildfires race across portions of that state.
Three people have already died on the firelines in Colorado: an air tanker pilot died when his single-engine plane crashed, and two volunteer firefighters on another wildfire were killed in a vehicle crash.
High winds drove a controlled burn that got out of hand near Ordway across 7,100 acres on Tuesday, forcing the evacuation of that town, which is located 122 miles southeast of Denver.
Fire officials were uncertain what caused the 1,000-acre wildfire on Fort Carson.
Also in the Rockies today, Montana gets an ally in its fight against coalbed methane development in British Columbia, and talks between the U.S. Forest Service and Plum Creek on roads raises concerns in Montana.
Rockies today
Air-tanker pilot dies fighting one of several large Colorado wildfires
Dry conditions and high winds helped push wildfires across large sections of Colorado, including a 1,000-acre wildfire in El Paso county where a private contractor working for the Forest Service died when his single-engine air tanker crashed, and two volunteer firefighters working on the 7,100-acre wildfire near Ordway died in a vehicle crash.
Denver Post; April 16
Federal energy corridor plan lambasted in U.S. House hearing
At a House Natural Resources Committee hearing on Tuesday, critics of the federal government's proposed energy corridors through 11 Western states, primarily through public lands, need more work and more input from tribes and local governments.
Casper Star-Tribune; April 16
B.C. city joins Montana in opposition to coalbed methane work
Montanans have long opposed coalbed methane development and coal mining in watersheds in British Columbia that feed rivers that flow into their state, and this week, the Fernie City Council passed a resolution opposing coalbed methane development in the Elk Valley region, through which the Elk River flows south into Montana's Lake Koocanusa.
Missoulian; April 16
Montana senator asks USFS to hold off on road talks with Plum Creek
U.S. Forest Service officials and Plum Creek have been working on clarification of road easements across Montana, sparking concerns that the timber company is poised to push residential development on some of the 1.2 million acres of land it owns in the state, and U.S. Sen. Jon Tester asked that such talks cease until local government officials can participate, but Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey suggested that counties simply do some planning if they're concerned about development.
Missoulian (AP); April 16
National Geographic leads effort on Yellowstone 'geotourism' map
Wyoming Travel and Tourism, the Idaho Division of Tourism Development and Travel Montana are teaming up with National Geographic to create a geotourism map of the Greater Yellowstone area, and the project launched Tuesday is taking nominations for places, events and people to be included in the map until the end of June
Casper Star-Tribune; April 16
Senate's Foreclosure Prevention Act gives big businesses big breaks
Montana Sen. Max Baucus said the Foreclosure Prevention Act, which allows the nation's largest homebuilders to claim millions of dollars in tax refunds by letting them charge their recent losses against their massive profits they made several years ago, and gives airlines and automakers an avenue to claim tax breaks too, was sound fiscal policy designed to stimulate the economy.
New York Times; April 16
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States nibble at foreclosure problem, wait for federal effort
While Congress fights over foreclosure legislation, states are attempting to staunch the flood of foreclosures on their own, with a mixture of intervention programs, counseling hotlines and nine have established refinance or emergency loan funds. Contains a graphic projecting foreclosures as a percentage of homeowners that puts Nevada at highest risk with 9.1 percent, followed by California and Arizona; Utah and Colorado are in the 4 to 5 percent range; and Idaho, Washington and Oregon in the 2 to 3 percent range.
New York Times; April 16
Opinion
Colorado senator should push for protection of Dominguez Escalante
It's been seven years since a proposal to provide additional protection to the Dominguez-Escalante area in western Colorado was first suggested, and now that the three counties are on board and water concerns have been addressed, Sen. Ken Salazar should introduce legislation to create the Dominguez Escalante National Conservation Area, and the remainder of the state's congressional delegation should back him up.
Grand Junction Sentinel; April 16
Federal Conservation Reserve Program doesn't work
As the prices of corn and wheat climb, farmers who had put their land into the federal Conservation Reserve Program are pulling the acres out and putting them back into production, an occurrence that has raised concerns among some groups, but the program never really worked other than to serve as the backbone of the government's welfare program for farmers. A column by George Wuerthner.
NewWest.net; April 16
Beyond the region
McCain lays out economic agenda in tax day speech
Arizona Sen. John McCain, the Republican Party's presumptive nominee for president, spoke on his economic policies on Tuesday, where he supported making tax cuts for businesses put in place by President Bush permanent, suspending the federal gas tax for the summer travel season, but remained silent on his previous promise to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term.
New York Times; April 16
Deadline looms for federal Farm Bill
The House and Senate agree on many of the components of the $300 billion Farm Bill, with each house passing legislation that increases support for conservation, food programs and more support for "specialty crops," but the primary sticking point is how to pay for it, and if they can't figure that out, the 2002 Farm Bill may have to be extended for a year--or in the worst-case scenario--revert to the 1949 permanent law.
Christian Science Monitor; April 16
Oil prices rocket through another record
Oil prices hit a record $114.32 early this morning, driven higher by the weak U.S. dollar, long-term supply constraints and speculative investors.
Toronto Financial Post (Reuters); April 16
In depth
Outfitters have clients lining up to hunt wolves in Montana
Montana may have a wolf hunt this fall, and some outfitters said they already have a long list of clients who want an opportunity to shoot the large predator, but the debate continues on what effect a hunt will have on the wolf population.
NewWest.net; April 16
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