Originally published on June 15, 2018 6:35 pm Public lands have been in the news a lot this year. They comprise much of the Mountain West, from around 30 percent of land in Montana and Colorado to more than 60 percent in Utah and Idaho.

Originally published on August 21, 2018 4:24 pm The Trump administration announced a new rule on greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired power plants, called the ‘Affordable Clean Energy Rule.’ It would put regulatory power in states’ hands.

Originally published on August 21, 2018 9:11 am Over the last 30 years, the West has seen an uptick in the size and frequency of forest fires. Scientists have typically attributed the change to low snowpack and high summer temperatures.

Originally published on August 7, 2018 3:44 pm A new species of tick, the longhorned tick, has arrived in the U.S. In other parts of the world it’s been known to carry diseases that can sicken people and livestock. In East Asia the tick can carry a nasty hemorrhagic fever called SFTS.

Originally published on August 8, 2018 2:59 pm The Denver Post wasn’t dying, says Larry Ryckman; it was being murdered. “We were under attack by our own owners,” says Ryckman, who was until recently senior editor of news at the newspaper.

Originally published on July 23, 2018 11:50 am Wyoming and Colorado are in the top ten natural gas producing states. But in those states – and across the country – a lot of that gas is escaping straight into the air.

Originally published on July 24, 2018 8:34 am The Pew Research Center is reporting that more than a third of large newspapers laid off staff in the last year or so, including in our region.

Originally published on July 19, 2018 1:49 pm Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper signed an executive order this week requiring that abandoned oil and gas equipment be plugged up or removed.  The move comes about a year after an old natural gas pipeline leaked methane into a home in Firestone, Colorado.

Originally published on July 16, 2018 10:32 am Pikas are fluffy mammals that live at high altitudes across the West. They squeak when danger nears. The squeaky fluff-balls are considered indicators of climate change because they’re so sensitive to heat.

Originally published on July 12, 2018 1:11 pm The Bureau of Land Management planned to lease about 18,000 acres of land in southern Colorado for oil and gas drilling. Now, the bureau says it’s holding off so it can consult with the Navajo Nation.

Originally published on July 10, 2018 9:11 am One of the world’s biggest firefighting aircraft is based in Colorado Springs. But it’s fighting fires in California right now, rather than in the Mountain West.

Originally published on June 27, 2018 2:00 pm Nuclear testing during the Cold War sent radioactive fallout far away from the actual test sites. Politicians are moving to expand who can be compensated by the government for getting sick after exposure to that fallout.

Originally published on May 24, 2018 12:25 pm Until fairly recently, it was illegal to harvest rainwater in Colorado. Now, as in a number of other Western states, it’s seen as alternative water source in an increasingly dry landscape. But is rainwater safe?

Originally published on May 29, 2018 9:39 am A bipartisan group of Colorado lawmakers kicked off an anti-gerrymandering campaign this month. They want to take redistricting decisions out of the hands of state legislators and put it into the hands of twelve voters.

Originally published on May 31, 2018 10:33 am Voices continue to mount against the Trump administration’s plan to lease land for oil drilling near the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado.

Originally published on June 4, 2018 6:45 pm In the summer of 2012, fiancés David Mullins and Charlie Craig tried to order a wedding cake from a shop in a Denver suburb. The owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop refused to serve the same-sex couple because of his Christian beliefs.