Endangered Species Act Protections Sought for Salamander

Endangered Species Act Protections Sought for Salamander

A rare salamander that occupies a unique niche in the Pacific Northwest will likely have its day in court to decide whether it merits protection under the Endangered Species Act. The Siskiyou Mountains salamander depends on damp, deep-forest talus slopes. It survives...
Ex-Lobbyist Bernhardt New Interior Department Chief

Ex-Lobbyist Bernhardt New Interior Department Chief

David Bernhardt, a former lobbyist for the oil and gas industry who has drawn intense criticism for alleged conflicts of interest during his stint as a top official in the Trump administration’s Department of the Interior, was confirmed as permanent Secretary of the...
Group Sues Over Drilling Near Mount St. Helens

Group Sues Over Drilling Near Mount St. Helens

A conservation group is suing the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management for approving a Canadian company’s request to explore for gold and other minerals just outside the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument in Washington’s Cascade Mountains. In...
Controversial Utah Ski Expansion On Hold—For Now

Controversial Utah Ski Expansion On Hold—For Now

The owners of a small Utah ski area have apparently withdrawn a request for a Forest Service permit that would clear the way for a major expansion into a roadless area of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. Last year, Mountain Capital Partners, owners of the...
Judge Blocks Drilling Over Climate Concerns

Judge Blocks Drilling Over Climate Concerns

In a ruling that could reverberate across federally managed lands, a U.S. district court judge on Monday found that the Bureau of Land Management must take climate change into account when deciding whether to approve leases for oil and gas drilling. U.S. District...