Compared to its neighbors, the state limits public recreation, but that is changing.
Nick Bowlin
Nick Bowlin is a contributing editor for High Country News. Email him at nickbowlin@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor.
Posted inJuly 21, 2019: A Radical Return
Portland club discrimination case settled
As part of the settlement, the dress code used to discriminate against black patrons must be stopped.
Posted inJuly 21, 2019: A Radical Return
Forest Service might limit public comments
The revision would allow the agency to approve more projects without environmental review.
Posted inJune 24, 2019: Losing Lake Coeur d'Alene
Interior combatant confirmed to department
Endangered Species Act opposer Susan Combs officially takes role as assistant secretary after long delay.
Posted inJune 24, 2019: Losing Lake Coeur d'Alene
The West’s worst fires aren’t burning in forests
Range fires get bigger every year, threatening sagebrush habitat and rural towns.
Posted inArticles
New Godzilla movie makes a mess of environmental ethics
Once an allegory for the atomic bomb, the big lizard has come to represent climate change.
Posted inMay 27, 2019: Public Pushback
On Rhubarb and redactions
An HCN editor trains NYTimes staff, and we remember longtime readers.
Posted inArticles
America forgot the Chinese workers who built the railroad
Historian Gordon Chang’s new book attempts to correct that erasure.
Posted inArticles
Judge orders industries to pay royalties for public land extraction
Tens of millions more dollars will flow into Western communities after a federal court throws out the Trump administration’s industry-friendly deal.
Posted inApril 15, 2019: Scene of the Crime
A return from our spring hiatus
HCN receives an American Society of Journalists and Authors award and a lovely tribute to our former publisher.
Posted inArticles
Trump administration rubber stamps Arizona copper mine
An industry-friendly ruling contradicts years of concerns over potential damage to endangered species, water systems and Native American cultural sites.
Posted inArticles
A silver lining to sage grouse rollbacks?
While there’s less protection overall, a few Western states restore regulations that match or surpass original plans.
Posted inArticles
The true vulnerability of coastal California, revealed
A new study suggests flooding could surpass some of the state’s worst natural disasters.
Posted inArticles
Utah asks for exemption from Forest Service roadless rule
For two decades, the rule has protected nearly four million acres in Utah.
Posted inMarch 18, 2019: Arizona's Wild Horse Paradox
Commercial honeybees threaten to displace Utah’s native bees
Federal lands could offer hives a respite from pesticides.
Posted inMarch 4, 2019: El Nuevo Movimiento
Glimpse inside the last inland temperate rainforest
Endangered species and landscapes vividly captured in a new book.
Posted inFebruary 18, 2019: Barriers to Entry
Editors out and about this winter
From Washington Post op-eds to guest speaking engagements, our editors stay busy (and warm).
Posted inArticles
Western voters care more about climate than ‘energy dominance’
An annual survey reveals a leap in support of conservation policies.
Posted inArticles
Farmers and ranchers lose vital support during shutdown
The funding stalemate has halted Department of Agriculture programs that the rural West relies on.