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In the Rockies today, the focus is on energy resources, old and new.
The Interior Department rolled out its draft rules on oil-shale development in Colorado, Wyoming and Utah on Tuesday, and advocates and opponents of the proposal responded accordingly.
Advocates acknowledged that economically feasible oil-shale extraction is still years away, but applauded the government's decision to get the ball rolling.
Opponents, including Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter, said such development won't do much in the short term to address high fuel costs, and oil-shale work will still exact in those three states.
In Wyoming, where a conference on hydrogen energy is under way, scientists urged the government to aggressively pursue ways to lower the cost of manufacturing the emissions-free energy.
And finally, in Utah, a state lawmaker continues his quest to get nuclear energy back into that state's mix of energy resources.
Rockies today
Wildfires consume ever-larger chunk of federal agencies' time, money
Wildfires in the West have become larger, more intense and much more costly to fight, and as more dollars are diverted to dousing the flames, federal agencies' money and manpower are funneled away from recreational, fuel reduction and timber sales projects. Another in a series.
Idaho Statesman; July 23
Interior Dept.'s proposed rules on oil-shale includes lower royalties
Interior Department Secretary Dirk Kempthorne said establishing lower royalty rates would make extraction of oil from rocky deposits in Wyoming, Utah and Colorado more attractive to energy companies and spur investment and research into commercially viable ways to get the oil out.
Casper Star-Tribune (AP); July 23
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Oil-shale proposal elicits bipartisan skepticism
Even stalwart Republicans were skeptical that the Interior Department's proposal to ramp up oil-shale development by lowering royalties would do much to address the high cost of fuel, given that such development will take massive amounts of water which simply might not exist, and U.S. refineries are currently not set up to process the kerogen from the oil shale. Another look.
Salt Lake Tribune; July 23
Wyoming hydrogen conference explores biofuel connection
At Tuesday's session of the Mountain States Hydrogen Business Council's hydrogen conference at the University of Wyoming, panelists extolled the virtues of hydrogen power as an alternative to its more carbon-emitting fossil fuel cousins, but said aggressive government support is needed to help underwrite development of equipment used to make hydrogen.
Casper Star-Tribune; July 23
Utah sites under consideration for new nuclear-power plant
State Rep. Aaron Tilton, who also heads up Transition Power Development, a company formed to develop new nuclear power facilities in Utah, said one site under consideration for such a plant was an industrial park near Green River, but that up to three other sites in the state were also being reviewed.
Salt Lake Tribune; July 23
Groups say Colorado's roadless plan will open 300K acres to development
A coalition of sportsmen and conservation groups are urging Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter not to sign off on the state's proposal for the 1.4 million acres of federal roadless forest lands in the state.
Denver Post; July 23
Idaho group disputes Smokey Bear's ATV ad
The Idaho-based Blue Ribbon Coalition said a new U.S. Forest Service ad that shows Smokey the Bear warning two all-terrain vehicle riders that sparks from the ATVs could start a forest fire unfairly implies that legal use of off-road vehicles starts forest fires. You may have to view an ad to read this article.
Albuquerque Journal (AP); July 23
Plum Creek CEO says company plans to stay in Montana
Plum Creek President Rick Holley said Montana is home to nearly two-thirds of the timber company's 2,000 employees, and that it will spend $180 million over the next decade to upgrade manufacturing facilities in the western part of the state, which Holley said underscores the company's long-term commitment to the state.
Kalispell Daily Inter Lake; July 23
Opinion
Utah high court should have set limits on streambed access
The Utah Supreme Court's decision that said the public is entitled to use the state's streambeds, provided they access the waterways from public property, should have gone a step further and defined just how far that access could go, using perhaps the standard other states use: the high water mark of the river or stream.
Salt Lake Tribune; July 23
Beyond the region
Texas asks EPA to waive ethanol mandate
The governor of Texas wants the federal Environmental Protection Agency to grant his state an emergency waiver cutting the 9 billion gallons of ethanol required this year to be blended with gasoline to 4.5 billion gallons and to keep the mandate at that level for 2009.
New York Times; July 23
Medical school in central Washington state brings economic benefits
The new College of Osteopathic Medicine at the Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences in Yakima will be dedicated today, with 75 students poised to be the program's first graduates.
Yakima Herald; July 23
In depth
Intense lightning fuels up concerns about wildfires in Montana
Thunderstorms packing a lot of lightning moved through the Bitterroot and Salmon-Challis national forests in Montana on Tuesday, putting fire spotters on high alert.
Ravalli Republic; July 23
Weather dampens Montana wildfire
Crews fighting the 80-acre wildfire near Montana's Lindbergh Lake got a little help from light rain and cloud cover that quieted the fire.
Missoulian; July 23
Montana Guard ready for aerial attacks on wildfires
The Montana National Guard is prepping its fleet of helicopters, including new paint jobs, for this year's wildfire season.
Helena Independent Record; July 23
BLM: 1,000-acre wildfire in Idaho caused by humans
The Bureau of Land Management urged the public to be more careful in southwest Idaho after a human-caused wildfire raced across 1,000 acres of grassland near Boise.
Idaho Statesman; July 23
Colorado wildfire forces shutdown of pipeline, gas wells
Fire officials said the 150-acre wildfire burning near Parachute in western Colorado was about 60 percent contained, and that they believed crews would have the fire fully contained by Thursday.
Grand Junction Sentinel; July 23
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| "This is a last-ditch, irresponsible attempt by the White House to issue commercial oil-shale leases, at Colorado's expense."
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Company proposes coal-to-fuels project in Alberta
Montana city opens files on coal-fired power plant proposal
Colorado ski resorts like Udall's legislation to expand use
Colorado university launches program to train 'green-collar' workers
Montana again raises split-state brucellosis proposal
Denver could lose 675 jobs in United's latest round of cuts
Idaho wolf foe says decision will aid his wolf-removal initiative
Tourism in Montana up in some areas, down in others
Colorado GOP lawmakers push Democrats on wildfire panel
Federal appeals court upholds Montana hunting rule on reservations
Nevada senator sponsors polygamy victims legislation
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Exclusively
on Headwaters:
NewVoices/NewWest:
Culture
Clash: Can the federal No Child Left Behind Act coexist with Montana's
Indian Education for All?
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Regional Conferences
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BLM public meetings on geothermal energy development:
July 23: Helena, Mont.; Lewis and Clark Main Library, 120 S. Last Chance Gulch
July 24: Denver, Colo.; PPA Event Center, 2105 Decatur Street
July 28: Seattle, Wash.; Seattle Public Library, University Branch, 5009 Roosevelt Way, N.E.
July 29: Portland, Ore.; Multnomah County Library, Central Branch, 801 SW 10th Avenue
Sept. 8-11: The U.S. Geological Survey's Third Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds, Estes Park, Colo. Read a preview.
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Headwaters
News is a project of the Center
for the Rocky Mountain West at the University
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