Utah's multibillion dollar oil train proposal chugs along amid environment and derailment concerns
One of the United States' biggest rail investments in more than a century could be an 88-mile line in Utah that would run through tribal lands and national forest to move oil and gas to the national rail network.
US forest managers urge revelers to swap fireworks for Silly String, but some say not so fast
U.S. Forest Service managers are urging people in the drought-stricken Southwest to forgo the fireworks this July Fourth, suggesting instead that cans of red, white and blue Silly String could be used to celebrate.
Tribe warns US government against moving ahead with mine
Native American tribal members fighting plans for an enormous copper mine on land they consider sacred say they are increasingly worried U.S. officials will move forward on the project even as they await a federal appellate court ruling in the case.
Massive New Mexico blaze blamed on miscalculations, errors
U.S. Forest Service employees made multiple miscalculations, used inaccurate models and underestimated how dry conditions were, causing a planned burn to reduce the threat of wildfires to turn into the largest blaze in New Mexico's recorded history.
Fire crews close in around massive New Mexico wildfire
Firefighters in New Mexico are taking advantage of diminished winds to build more fire lines and clear combustible brush near homes close to the fringes of the largest wildfire burning in the U.S. The blaze has charred hundreds of square miles of tinder-dry forest, destroying dozens of homes and triggering the evacuation of thousands across an expansive stretch of rural northeastern New Mexico.
USDA puts brakes on land transfer for Arizona copper mine
Congress mandated that the land be transferred to Resolution Copper no later than 60 days after the final environmental review was published. โOak Flat is still on death row,โ he said. โEssentially, they're just changing the execution date.โDan Blondeau, a spokesman for Resolution Copper, said the company is evaluating the decision. Resolution Copper would get 3.75 square miles (9.71 square kilometers) of national forest land in exchange for eight parcels it owns elsewhere in Arizona. Eventually, the mine will swallow Oak Flat.
Court rules against Apaches in bid to halt proposed mine
Apache Stronghold made the request as part of a lawsuit it filed against the Forest Service earlier this year. AdU.S. Department of Justice attorneys representing the Forest Service had argued Apache Stronghold didn't do that, and Logan agreed. โI am very disappointed but Iโm not giving up," Apache Stronghold leader Wendsler Nosie, Sr. said in a Friday night statement. The Tonto National Forest Service has said it does not comment on litigation. Those things exist elsewhere, but Apache Stronghold said they have unique power within Oak Flat.
Apaches' fight over Arizona copper mine goes before US court
The Forest Service says it's doing what Congress mandated. ___OTHER LAWSUITSThe Apache Stronghold lawsuit is one of three filed over the copper mine, some of which have overlapping arguments. The San Carlos Apache Tribe, and a coalition of environmentalists, tribes and the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition, also sued the U.S. Forest Service. Apache Stronghold contends the land belongs to Western Apaches under an 1852 treaty with the United States. AdReuben Schifman, a U.S. Department of Justice Attorney representing the Forest Service, said Apache Stronghold can't assert ownership rights because it's not a federally recognized tribe.
Apaches object to Forest Service review of huge copper mine
The Forest Service now has 60 days to turn over a tract of land in Tonto National Forest east of Phoenix to Resolution Copper Mining, a joint venture of the international mining companies Rio Tinto and BHP. Environmentalists contend the Forest Service was pressured to push the review over the finish line before President Donald Trump leaves office, complicating their efforts to reverse the land swap. The Forest Service said that's not true, while the mining company contends the publication already was delayed by months. It also contends the Forest Service legally can't transfer the land because it belongs to Apaches under an 1852 treaty. Resolution Copper is set to receive 3.75 square miles (9.71 square kilometers) of Forest Service land in exchange for eight parcels the company owns elsewhere in Arizona.
Groups ask court to restore protections for US gray wolves
Trump administration officials on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2020, stripped Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in most of the U.S., ending longstanding federal safeguards and putting states in charge of overseeing the predators. โ Wildlife advocates on Thursday asked a federal court to overturn a U.S. government decision that stripped Endangered Species Act protections for wolves across most of the nation. Protections for wolves in the Rockies were lifted over the last decade and hunting of them is allowed. Some biologists who reviewed the administrationโs plan to strip protections from wolves said it lacked scientific justification. A small population of Mexican gray wolves in the Southwest remain protected as an endangered species.
WATCH: US Capitol Christmas tree lighting ceremony
The Architect of the Capitol hosted a ceremony to light the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree on Wednesday. The tree was harvested on Nov. 6 from the Uncompahgre National Forest in Colorado and decorated with thousands of handcrafted ornaments from children in Colorado. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Chief of the U.S. Forest Service Vicki Christiansen participated in the ceremony.
Groups fight to keep gray wolf protections for most of US
Trump administration officials on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2020, stripped Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in most of the U.S., ending longstanding federal safeguards and putting states in charge of overseeing the predators. (U.S. Forest Service via AP, File)BILLINGS, Mont. โ Wildlife advocates and environmental groups have announced that they are challenging the removal of federal protections for gray wolves across most of the U.S.Two coalitions of groups filed formal notices over the past several days that they plan to sue the U.S. The Trump administration last week finalized a decision that ends longstanding federal safeguards for gray wolves in the Lower 48 states except for a small population of Mexican gray wolves in the Southwest. But they remain absent from much of their historical range and wildlife advocates have said protections still are needed.
Federal agencies fall short of Trump forest protection goals
Gavin Newsom of doing a โterrible jobโ of forest protection, his own agencies fell short of his goals for federal lands in 2019. They treated a combined 6,736 square miles (17,446 square kilometers) โ just over half of the 13,203 square miles (34,196 square kilometers) the president sought, according to government data. It jumped to 8,505 square miles (22,027 square kilometers) in 2016 โ President Barack Obama's last year in office. Under Trump, the treated area has gone from 6,367 square miles (16,490 square kilometers) in 2017 to nearly 7,336 square miles (19,000 square kilometers) in 2018. Last year it was up to 6,736 square miles (17,446 square kilometers).
Correction: Gray Wolves-Endangered story
FILE - This June 30, 2017 remote camera image released by the U.S. Forest Service shows a female gray wolf and her mate with a pup born in 2017 in the wilds of Lassen National Forest in Northern California. Trump administration officials on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2020, stripped Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in most of the U.S., ending longstanding federal safeguards and putting states in charge of overseeing the predators. (U.S. Forest Service via AP, File)
Utility equipment eyed as possible source of fire near LA
(Maxar Technologies via AP)LOS ANGELES โ Federal investigators are looking into whether a huge wildfire near Los Angeles was sparked by Southern California Edison utility equipment, according to the company. The initial report of fire was near Cogswell Dam in the San Gabriel Mountains at 12:21 p.m. on Sept. 6. โSouthern California Edison understands this is a difficult time for the many people who are being impacted by the Bobcat fire,โ Song said. In recent years California utilities have strategically shut off power to some areas in order to prevent its equipment from sparking wildfires. Firefighters have also controlled several other lightning-sparked wildfires burning for more than a month in Northern California.
Firefighter who died in blaze was on elite Hotshot crew
A California firefighter killed while battling a blaze in the mountains east of Los Angeles was identified Tuesday as a member of an elite Hotshot crew dedicated to fighting wildfires. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen said Morton was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times. Ramon Herrera, also with the U.S. Forest Service, told KTLA he had worked with Morton. Itโs very demanding โ not just physically, but mentally.โMorton died Thursday while fighting the El Dorado fire some 80 miles (129 kilometers) east of Los Angeles. ___Associated Press writer Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed this report.
California wildfire threatening more than 1,000 homes
In this aerial photo provided by the U.S. Forest Service, smoke from a wildfire is in part of Medicine Bow National Forest on Monday, Sept. 21, 2020. Forest Service via AP)LOS ANGELES โ A wildfire scorching its way through brush and timber from the mountains to the desert northeast of Los Angeles threatened more than 1,000 homes on Tuesday as crews across the West battled dozens of other major blazes. The blaze was one of more than two dozen major wildfires burning across California, including five of the largest in state history. Morton, was a 14-year veteran of the U.S. Forest Service and a squad boss with the Big Bear Interagency Hotshot Crew of the San Bernardino National Forest. โCharlie was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times,โ said U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen.
Enormous California wildfire threatens desert homes near LA
At 165 square miles (427 square kilometers), the Bobcat Fire is one of the largest ever in Los Angeles County after burning for more than two weeks. Evacuation orders and warnings are in place for thousands of residents in foothill and desert areas, where semi-rural homes and a popular nature sanctuary have burned. Erratic winds that drove flames into the community of Juniper Hills over the weekend had died down, said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Larry Smith. He had worked with the U.S. Forest Service for 14 years. โCharlie was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times,โ said U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen.
California fire that killed 3 threatens thousands of homes
(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)OROVILLE, Calif. A Northern California wildfire threatened thousands of homes Thursday after winds whipped it into a monster that incinerated houses in a small mountain community and killed at least three people. The school is gone, the fire departments gone, the bars gone, the laundromats gone, the general stores gone, he told the Sacramento Bee, adding, Ill never go back." In Southern California, fires burned in Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. The rest of the week looks a little more favorable.___Melley reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press writers John Antczak in Los Angeles and Olga R. Rodriguez in San Francisco contributed to this report.
'We don't leave until it's out' U.S. Forest Service crews battling Cliff Fire three days later
Only at 30% containment, the smoke from the Cliff Fire is a lot lighter Monday, compared with the big flames seen Friday. We dont leave until its out, Adam Christy, incident commander trainee for U.S. Fire Service, said. He was one of the crew members pulled out as the flames grew in the Jefferson National Forest. So right now, we do have a small hose leak from the bottom using the river. U.S. Forest Service said the weekends cooler temperatures and light rain has helped them tremendously, but the work isn't done.
U.S. Forest Service crews work to battle Cliff Fire
BEDFORD, Va. - Hikers called the Bedford County fire responders after they saw a fire on the mountain near the Appalachian trail. Officials with the U.S. Forest Service are calling it the Cliff Fire' because of the steep terrain. Many people couldn't help, but to stop and look as they saw thick smoke fill the sky in Bedford County Friday. "This is actually early in what we consider the fall wildfire season in Virginia," Peter Irvine, information officer with U.S. Forest Service, said. Given the hot and dry weather we've been having, fighting the fire has not been easy for U.S. Forest Service crews.
Court to weigh fight over Mountain Valley Pipeline across Appalachian Trail
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Supreme Court will consider reinstating a permit that was tossed out by a lower court that would allow construction of a natural gas pipeline through two national forests, including parts of the Appalachian Trail. The justices said Friday they will hear appeals filed by energy companies that want to build the 605-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline and the Trump administration, which initially approved the project. The federal appeals court in Richmond, Virginia, ruled in December that the U.S. Forest Service has no power to authorize the crossing of the popular trail and had "abdicated its responsibility to preserve national forest resources" when it approved the pipeline crossing the George Washington and Monongahela National Forests, as well as a right-of-way across the Appalachian Trail. Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.