In the Rockies today, wolves, bison and wildfires are in the news.
At the annual Conference of Western Attorneys General in Sun Valley, Idaho Fish and Game Commissioner Randy Budge said he believed that if Idaho wasn't allowed to go forward with its plans for a wolf hunt this fall, hunters in the state may be so disgruntled they will take the big predators illegally.
In Montana, a state district judge heard arguments about bison migrating from Yellowstone National Park onto Horse Butte Peninsula, and the state's authority to regulate such migration.
Also in Montana, the Kootenai Creek wildfire that has been burning since July 12 blew up on Tuesday when winds drove the fire to nearly double in size.
In our In-depth section, crews in British Columbia held the fire lines on some of the major fires burning in that Canadian province; a Colorado wildfire spread across 3,000 acres in 24 hours, and fire officials in south-central Idaho said this year's wildfire season has been a mild one -- so far.
Today in our On the Bookshelf column, we offer a review of Richard Manning's "Rewilding the West: Restoration in a Prairie Landscape."
Manning covers the history of Montana's eastern plains and speculates on a less-developed future for the region.
Manning, along with his wife, Tracy Stone-Manning, co-founded Headwaters News nearly a decade ago.
Rockies today
Wind whips Montana wildfire
High winds caused the Kootenai Creek wildfire, which was ignited by lightning on July 12, to nearly double in size to 2,000 acres on Tuesday.
Ravalli Republic; Aug. 5
Groups argue bison migration issue in Montana district court
At a hearing Tuesday, Montana State District Court Judge John Brown heard arguments in a lawsuit filed by the Montana Stockgrowers Association and two ranchers in the West Yellowstone area seeking to limit bison migration out of Yellowstone National Park onto Horse Butte Peninsula near the park, alleging that such migration posed a danger to the state's beef industry.
Bozeman Daily Chronicle; Aug. 5
BIA hires Crow legal counsel for deputy assistant secretary post
Larry EchoHawk, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, appointed Del Laverdure, the chief legal counsel for the executive branch of the Crow Tribe, as deputy assistant secretary with the Department of Indian Affairs.
Idaho Statesman (AP); Aug. 5
Idaho FWP official says wolf hunt will go forward, one way or another
At a gathering Monday of attorneys general from Western states, Idaho Fish and Game Commissioner Randy Budge said that if the state doesn't set up a wolf hunt this fall, he believes many Idaho hunters will take the matters into their own hands and hunt the wolves illegally.
Idaho Mountain Express; Aug. 5
Weak economy shackles Montana Legacy Project
The Nature Conservancy and the Trust for Public Lands are struggling to find funds to complete the third phase of the Montana Legacy Project, due in part to the nation's weakened real estate economy.
NewWest.net; Aug. 5
Montana wildlife corridor part of Patagonia's national study
Patagonia's Freedom to Roam is a national effort launched by the clothing company to document wildlife in about a dozen critical corridors, and on Aug. 15 and Sept. 19, "citizen scientists" are being sought to hike Montana's MacDonald Pass west of Helena to document wildlife in that corridor.
Helena Independent Record; Aug. 5
Opinion
Colorado community should encourage, not mandate, fire-reduction efforts
While it's understandable that Breckenridge would want the residents of the Colorado mountain community to create defensible space around their homes built in the wildland-urban interface, the community's proposed mandates simply went too far.
Denver Post; Aug. 5
Beyond the region
Former governors of NW states wade into salmon debate
John Kitzhaber, Cecil Andrus and Mike Lowry, former governors of Oregon, Idaho and Washington, respectively, sent a letter this week to President Obama, requesting that he reject his predecessor's salmon recovery plan, and said that the plan would likely be found illegal; the Obama administration has until Aug. 14 to make a decision on whether to defend, amend or ditch the Bush administration's proposal.
Portland Oregonian; Aug. 5
Buyers using 'cash-for-clunkers' funds opting for Japanese cars
Federal officials said the wildly successful "cash-for-clunkers" program, which pays consumers to trade in their gas-hogs for more fuel-efficient models has nearly run through the $1 billion appropriated for the program, and that thus far, the top five cars that customers are snapping up are the Ford Focus, the the Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, Toyota Prius and Toyota Camry.
Washington Post; Aug. 5
U.S. Senate OKs $500K for audit of organics program
The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to allocate $500,000 of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's budget to expand an audit of its National Organics Program.
Washington Post; Aug. 5
In depth
Crews hold the lines on B.C. wildfires
Crews fighting the 8,236-acre Mount McLean fire that forced the evacuation of Lillooet earlier this week made good progress against that wildfire on Tuesday, and other crews were able to gain ground on the 18,525-acre Terrace Mountain fire, northwest of Kelowna, B.C., as well.
Vancouver Sun; Aug. 5
Colorado wildfire spreads across 3,000 acres
A wildfire ignited by lightning Monday afternoon in northwest Colorado quickly spread across 3,000 acres in less than 24 hours.
Denver Post; Aug. 5
Wildfire season off to a slow start in south-central Idaho
There have been a number of small wildfires that were quickly put out in south-central Idaho, but no major wildfires have been reported thus far this season in that area of the state.
Twin Falls Times-News; Aug. 5
Beetle-killed trees add element of uncertainty to wildfire fight
There are millions of acres of forests in the West that have been killed by pine-bark beetles, including large swaths of the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming, where fire specialists agree that studies on fighting wildfires in the beetle-killed timber are limited and inconclusive, but acknowledge that traditional methods of fuel reduction around dwellings will help firefighters protect property. Second in a series on the beetle epidemic in the West's forests.
Jackson Hole News & Guide; Aug. 5
Lightning strikes ignite Oregon's wildfire season
On Monday, more than 6,400 lightning strikes were reported in Oregon, with 122 new wildfires reported that day as well.
Portland Oregonian; Aug. 4
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