The poet Rachel Richardson learns, through writing and motherhood, to defy fear.
Pollution
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Uranium trucks on Arizona’s ‘Killer 89’ spark alarm in tribal communities
White Mesa residents say they’d be last to know about accidents despite being closest to danger.
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‘They’ll have to drag me out before I go.’ EPA workers stand firm despite Trump chaos
Staff outside D.C. headquarters respond to funding freeze and other orders from the new administration.
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The beautiful and awful Butte, Montana
The indelible history of mining poisons a town yet extracts something new.
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EPA takes unprecedented step to remove uranium waste from the Navajo Nation
The decision opens the door for new ways to manage uranium pollution on tribal land.
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Jimmy Carter’s mixed environmental record
The former president emphasized conservation, protection — and coal mining.
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The Supreme Court decisions that gutted environmental protections in 2024
Several major cases destroyed federal agencies’ ability to address climate change and pollution.
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Denver’s last slaughterhouse is on the ballot
Voters face a complicated choice between jobs, workers’ rights and animal welfare.
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Fracking inside the neighborhood
As a planned community near the Rockies rises, so do concerns over a oil and gas operation that would stretch under the homes.
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The mother-daughter duo fighting fossil fuels in Colorado
How Madhvi and Lalitha Chittoor teamed up against a proposed oil and gas development.
Posted inOctober 2024: Latino Vote
The downballot issues driving the West’s 2024 elections
From climate and public lands to shifting political allegiances, the region faces critical choices at the ballot box.
Posted inSeptember 2024: When Migrants Go Missing
Preventing the next ‘Fukushima’
As oil and gas operations at Portland’s CEI Hub grow, so do the chances of a catastrophic spill.
Posted inSeptember 2024: When Migrants Go Missing
What happens when a concrete jungle becomes a ‘sponge city’
Engineering for flood resilience can address storms heightened by climate change.
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Alaska’s permafrost is thawing, releasing a concerning amount of mercury
“It has that sense of a bomb that’s going to go off.”
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Banning concentrated feedlots is on the ballot in Sonoma
Locals worry what this could mean for a region dominated by agritourism.
Posted inAugust 2024: In the Wake of the Floods
Indigenous celebration of Hanford remembers the site before nuclear contamination
At the fourth annual Hanford Journey, Yakama Nation youth, elders and scientists share stories about a land that is a part of them.
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Project 2025’s extreme vision for the West
The demolition of public lands, water and wildlife protections are part of conservatives’ plan for a second Trump term.
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Repeal of the Chevron doctrine will have profound consequences for federal rulemaking
Climate, public lands and tribal law regulations are now likely to face legal challenges.
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When grasshoppers attack
Is the cure for grasshopper outbreaks worse than the disease?
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What happens to birds when it’s smoky outside?
A community science initiative along the West Coast is using volunteer observations to study the effect of wildfire smoke on birds.