Environment
State wildlife agencies focus on ‘hook and bullet’ work. Some see a new path.
SEATTLE — The Cascade red fox, which lives high in the mountains of Washington state, is struggling to survive. State wildlife managers want to send researchers into the field to find out why. They’re also aiming to vaccinate pygmy rabbits against a deadly virus, restore habitat to support the Taylor’s checkerspot butterfly and establish new […]
Western states agree to Colorado River water-sharing agreement
The governors of Arizona, California and Nevada have announced a historic water-sharing agreement for the Colorado River in an attempt to salvage one of the West’s major sources of drinking water that has dwindled in severe drought. The agreement this week marks the culmination of months of tumultuous negotiations among seven Western states, whose 40 […]
‘We’re going to need so many seedlings’ for reforestation push
Over the next few years, state tree nurseries across the country will build new greenhouses, expand irrigation systems, upgrade seeding equipment and bring on staff. They’re hoping to turn millions of new federal dollars into millions of new seedlings — part of a collaborative effort to reforest landscapes threatened by climate change. “We’re going to […]
Even after a wet winter, California is preparing for the next drought
SAN DIEGO — Mountains are capped with record snowpack, rolling hills are covered in a rainbow of wildflowers, reservoirs are filled to the brim, and rivers are rushing with snowmelt. A vast majority of California is finally out of drought this month, after a punishing multiyear period of severe aridity that forced statewide water cuts […]