In the Rockies today, after an annual count of grizzly bears in Alberta came in far lower than estimated, officials of the Canadian province promised to spend the next two months talking with Albertans on how to preserve critical habitat for the big bruin.
A massive public-lands bill in the Senate may get its day in Congress in November, as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he'd try to bring the Omnibus Public Land Management Act up for hearing before Congress recesses for the year.
The bill contains about 143 separate pieces of legislation, including the Craig Thomas Snake Headwaters Legacy Act, the Wyoming Range Legacy Act, and Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo's Owyhee Canyonlands bill.
And in our In-depth section, JP Morgan Chase says the 5,800 Washington state employees of the recently purchased Washington Mutual will know the fate of their jobs by Dec. 1, and Wells Fargo steps in and purchases Wachovia, ending Citicorp's federally assisted effort to buy Wachoiva's banking arm.
Rockies today
Senate may take up far-ranging public-lands bill in November
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he will try to get Congress in November to address the Omnibus Public Land Management Act, a bipartisan bill with more than 140 pieces of legislation that includes protections for the Wyoming Range and a stretch of the Snake River in the Cowboy State.
Jackson Hole Daily; Oct. 2
Low number of grizzly bears takes Alberta gov't by surprise
Data from the most recent grizzly bear count in Alberta indicated that there were just 228 bears in an area thought to have the highest number of the big bruins, and Alberta Sustainable Resource Development said that the bears are in trouble and need significant help.
Edmonton Journal; Oct. 2
Tribe inks deal to sell Utah geothermal power to Calif. city
The Northwestern Band of Shoshone Nation Economic Development Corp. signed a 30-year contract with Riverside to sell the California city 64 megawatts of energy generated by a geothermal plant to be built on the tribe's historic lands in Utah's Box Elder County; the tribe is also building four such plants in southern Idaho.
Deseret News; Oct. 3
N.M. takes Desert Rock plant fight to Washington, D.C.
The state of New Mexico filed an appeal of the air permit granted by the Environmental Protection Agency to the coal-fired Desert Rock Power Plant to be build near Burnham on Navajo Nation lands with the Washington, D.C.-based Environmental Appeals Board, which could remand the permit if it agrees with the state.
Farmington Daily Times; Oct. 3
Utah congressman says he'll vote 'no' on revamped financial bill
Support for the revamped financial bailout bill varied among Utah's congressmen, with Democrat Rep. Jim Matheson still opposed to the bill; Republican Rep. Rob Bishop said he's undecided; and Republican Rep. Chris Cannon, who supported the original bill before the House, said he'll support this version as well.
Salt Lake Tribune; Oct. 3
Tumbling U.S. housing market takes B.C. forestry sector down with it
A report from PricewaterhouseCoopers said that during the first half of 2008, the Canadian forestry industry lost $1.2 billion, with eastern companies losing $700 million, and western companies, primarily in British Columbia, lost $500 million.
Vancouver Sun; Oct. 3
Idaho resort owner says ski season's a go
Tamarack Resort Chief Executive Officer Jean-Pierre Boespflug has been keeping operations at the Idaho resort going with his own funds, and he indicated that the resort would be open for skiing in December, but said that if new financing wasn't found, the season could be shortened.
Twin Falls Times-News (AP); Oct. 3
Opinion
Idaho senator quietly leads way to wilderness protection
Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo's brokering of an agreement between Idaho water users to end their objections to the Snake River Headwaters Legacy Act, which would protect a 387-mile stretch of the Snake River and its tributaries in Wyoming, may help move a massive package of public lands bills through the Senate, including Crapo's bill to protect an area of the Owyhee Canyonlands as wilderness.
Twin Falls Times-News; Oct. 3
Indian country needs Montana senators' Tribal Law and Order Act
Residents of two Indian reservations on Montana's Hi-Line have pleaded with local, state and federal law enforcement officials to do something about the lawlessness on their reservations, and while the "Tribal Law and Order Act," co-sponsored by Montana Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester and 10 other senators, won't come close to solving all the problems, it's at least a start.
Great Falls Tribune; Oct. 3
Beyond the region
Congress reauthorizes Amtrak programs for five years
Even though the bill passed by Congress reauthorizing Amtrak for the next five years does not contain any money to do so, the bill's passage is the strongest sign of support for the passenger rail system from Congress in more than a decade.
New York Times; Oct. 3
Oregon mustangs head to Denmark
Mustangs rounded up on Eastern Oregon rangelands are headed to Denmark, where all things Western are the rage.
Seattle Times (Baker City Herald); Oct. 3
DOE signs off on water-treatment plant at Hanford complex
The water-treatment plant designed by the Department of Energy to treat a contaminated plume of groundwater at the Hanford nuclear complex in Washington state will be the largest on the site, containing more than 50 wells and a $174-million pump and treat station.
Tri-City Herald; Oct. 3
Judge declines to dismiss charges against Alaska senator
The federal judge presiding over the trial of Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens chastised the prosecution for not disclosing evidence that could have aided Stevens' defense of charges of failing to report gifts as required by Senate rules, but declined to dismiss the case.
Washington Post; Oct. 3
Investigators find bone fragment in wreckage of Fossett's airplane
National Transportation Safety Board investigators said DNA testing will be done on a bone fragment found at the California crash site of the airplane adventurer Steve Fossett was flying when he disappeared more than a year ago.
Reno Gazette-Journal; Oct. 3
In depth
Senate poured 'sweetening' measures into massive bailout bill
In order to make the $700-billion financial rescue plan more palatable to U.S. House members who voted against the original legislation, the bill that passed the Senate contained targeted provisions such as a federal excise tax exemption for an Oregon arrowmaker, and a measure that lets Alaska plaintiffs in the Exxon-Valdez punitive damage case average out their award to ease their tax burden.
New York Times; Oct. 3
JPMorgan Chase gives 6 WaMu executives the boot
The 5,800 employees of Washington Mutual will know by Dec. 1 whether they have a job with JP Morgan Chase, which purchased the financially troubled savings-and-loan in September, although six top WaMu executives are leaving the company this week.
Seattle Post-Intelligencer; Oct. 3
Wells Fargo swoops in, snaps up Wachovia
Wachovia Corp. officials announced Friday that they had agreed to sell its entire operation to Wells Fargo & Co. for $15.1 billion dollars.
Yakima Herald-Republic (AP); Oct. 3
U.S. Labor report says 159,000 jobs lost in September
The 159,000 jobs cut in September was the most lost in five years, and September was the ninth consecutive month to report a reduction in jobs.
Denver Post (AP); Oct. 3
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