In the Rockies today, the U.S. Senate held a rare Sunday session to overcome a major obstacle on a massive public-lands bill.
The Senate voted 66-12 to clear a procedural hurdle on the legislation, opening the way for a full Senate vote, which could come this week.
The bill contains wilderness designations for areas of Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Oregon and California, as well as in three other states.
Wyoming's two senators voted in favor of the bill, which contains provisions to limit oil and gas development on the Wyoming Range and designate portions of the Snake River as "wild and scenic."
Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo's Owyhee Wilderness bill is included in the package, as well.
Rockies today
Public-lands bill expected to clear U.S. Senate this week
The U.S. Senate voted 66-12 during a rare Sunday session to move along a package of more than 150 public lands bills, which contains wilderness bills in Idaho, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Oregon, California, Michigan, West Virginia and Virginia; the measure is expected to pass the Senate and move to the U.S. House this week.
Los Angeles Times; Jan. 12
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Idaho senators both voted 'aye' for public lands bill
U.S. Sen. Jim Risch cast his first vote as a U.S. senator on Sunday, where he voted along with his Idaho counterpart, Sen. Mike Crapo, to move a massive public lands bill along for a final vote.
Idaho Statesman; Jan. 12
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Wyoming representative says she won't support bill
Wyoming's U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Mike Enzi both voted to remove a procedural roadblock to the Senate's consideration of a massive public-lands bill that contains provisions to protect the Wyoming Range and portions of the Snake River, neither of which U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis said she could support as currently written.
Casper Star-Tribune; Jan. 12
U. of Utah student says BLM bids were 'civil disobedience'
The University of Utah student who ran up prices and successfully bid on 13 parcels at the Bureau of Land Management's Dec. 19 auction of oil and gas leases, even though he didn't have the $1.8 million he bid for the leases, has raised the $45,000 required to hold on to the leases, and hopefully keep him out of jail.
Washington Post; Jan. 12
Highways, railroad tracks disrupt migration of pronghorns
The pronghorn antelope is unique to North America, and its migration can rival that of caribou, sometimes traveling hundreds of miles a year as they move between Montana in the winter to their summer range in central Saskatchewan and Alberta, a trip that is made more difficult by the heavily traveled TransCanada Highway, railroad tracks and fences.
Calgary Herald; Jan. 12
Washington researchers track effect of dirty snow
Scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Washington state released a new study that said the tiny particles of soot causes mountain snow to melt more quickly, and that while Oregon's mountain snow is relatively clean and melts more slowly, dirtier snow in British Columbia, Washington, Idaho and the central Rocky Mountains melts much faster.
Portland Oregonian; Jan. 12
B.C., Montana mining debate rages on for three decades
The North Fork Flathead River Valley in Montana is one of the most protected ecosystems in the United States, but across the border where that valley begins in British Columbia, the area is rich with coal, coalbed methane and other resources, and for 30 years, Rich Moy has worked to keep mining out of the Canadian Flathead to protect Glacier National Park in Montana. Contains a timeline of mining efforts in B.C.
Missoulian; Jan. 11
Opinion
Montana man a good fit for Obama's agriculture, interior dept.
President-elect Barack Obama should tap into Montanan Daniel Kemmis' wealth of knowledge about public lands and put him in the agriculture department in charge of the U.S. Forest Service or in interior, in charge of the Bureau of Land Management. Editor's note: Daniel Kemmis was a senior fellow at the Center for the Rocky Mountain West at the University of Montana of which Headwaters News is a project.
High Country News; Jan. 9
Nation needs to slow down on wind-energy development
Electricity generated by wind is being touted as "the" answer to the nation's growing energy needs, but before a large swath of the nation is blanketed with wind turbines, some thought should be given on ways to make generation, storage and transmission of electricity more compact and less intrusive,.
Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 12
Beyond the region
Democrats will push to undo Bush's midnight regulations
Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, who chairs a subcommittee on natural resources, said he'll focus on reversing eleventh-hour changes made by the Bush administration to the Endangered Species Act; a change made that would allow uranium mining near the Grand Canyon; and one that makes it easier coal mining companies to dump debris in streams and valleys.
New York Times; Jan. 11
Automakers bet billions on electric cars
Ford is working on its version of an all-electric car, and Toyota will unveil its all-electric concept car at the Detroit auto show this week.
New York Times; Jan. 12
YouTube, Congress team up on lawmakers' channel
YouTube will unveil two new Web pages today, one for the U.S. House and one for the U.S. Senate, that will allow federal lawmakers to create a video channel.
New York Times; Jan. 12
Budget battle divides Democrats in Washington Legislature
The projected $6 billion budget shortfall has created discord among Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Chris Gregoire.
Seattle Times; Jan. 12
Repeated flooding in Wash. state indicates flaw in planning
Each year, about 24,000 acres in western Washington is converted from private forest lands to development and other uses, rivers have been straightened so that they're more ditch than waterways, and the latest round of flooding underscores what critics have been saying about Washington state's lack of land-use planning.
Seattle Times; Jan. 12
In depth
Wind projects power up economy in SE New Mexico
The residents of rural areas of southeastern New Mexico are questioning the impact large-scale, industrial sized wind farms will have on their lives, but the rural counties where the projects are being built are welcoming the revenue and jobs the wind farms produce.
Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 11
Lack of transmission capacity hamstrings renewable energy projects
Development of the West's wind, solar and geothermal energy has been curtailed by the lack of transmission capacity to carry the electricity from where it's created to where it's needed, and in November, four federal lands agencies released the final environmental impact statement for proposed energy corridors across federal lands.
Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 12
Montana's energy future topic of 2-day conference
Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, energy industry representatives and economists gathered in Helena Friday and Saturday to discuss Montana's energy future and how the federal stimulus package under consideration could shape that future.
Billing Gazette; Jan. 10
Colorado company raises $34M for biorefinery
Colorado-based ZeaChem Inc. has raised $34 million so far to help build a biorefinery that will use bacteria to convert wood waste to biofuel.
Denver Rocky Mountain News; Jan. 10
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