Senate Republicans have again blocked Democratic legislation that would halt President Donald Trump’s war with Iran.

Nine Native American tribes are suing the federal government in a bid to stop exploratory drilling for graphite near a sacred site in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

The Trump administration says it will be moving U.S. Forest Service headquarters from the nation's capital to Utah as part of a broad overhaul.

PacifiCorp has agreed to pay $575 million to resolve the federal government's claims for damages stemming from six wildfires in Oregon and California.

Wildlife crews have stopped actively searching for two juvenile gray wolves in Northern California's Sierra Valley.

One of the planned burns will cover approximately 40 acres near State Route 621, about 6.5 miles from Blacksburg.

Amherst County Fire and EMS announced Wednesday that their 911 Center had received multiple calls regarding a smokey haze, specifically around Route 130.

Two wildfires continue to burn in the Jefferson National Forest near Oriskany, with the Bald Mountain fire covering approximately 2,000 acres along the Botetourt-Craig County line, according to Botetourt County officials.

Dry conditions and shifting winds are contributing to higher fire danger today.

A U.S. appeals court has put the brakes on the transfer of federal forest land in Arizona to a company that plans to mine one of the largest copper deposits in North America.

A big bronze statue of a donkey named Brighty the Burro has been recovered from the charred rubble of the Grand Canyon Lodge in Arizona.

More than 800 structures are being threatened by a massive wildfire burning through Los Padres National Forest in central California.

President Donald Trump’s administration is moving to lift restrictions on copper-nickel mining that the Biden administration imposed near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northeastern Minnesota.

The group Apache Stronghold is vowing to carry on the fight against a massive copper mining project on land the Apaches hold sacred, after a Supreme Court decision that is expected to let the mine proceed.

President Donald Trump’s administration is trying to merge the government’s wildland firefighting efforts into a single agency.

The U.S. Forest Service is evicting dozens of homeless people who have been living in a national forest in central Oregon for years so that it can start a wildfire prevention project.

President Donald Trump's administration has rolled back environmental protections around future logging projects on more than half of U.S. national forests under an emergency designation issued Friday that cites the dangers of wildfires.

The Brush Mountain Fire is now fully contained, with crews securing a line around 482 acres and the Appalachian Trail remaining closed for safety.

The U.S. Forest Service is now working to contain a Roanoke County Fire near Catawba, Roanoke Fire and Rescue Department said.

US Forest Service crews continue to battle the wildfire Friday morning, as they work to contain the blaze within the controlled boundaries and clean up any remaining hot spots.

Crews battled wildfires in North and South Carolina amid dry conditions and gusty winds as residents were forced to evacuate in some areas.

The termination letters that ended the careers of thousands of U.S. Forest Service employees mean fewer people and less resources will be available to help prevent and fight wildfires.

Whitewater outfitters on the Nolichucky River are facing an uncertain future after Hurricane Helene devastated this scenic spot on the North Carolina-Tennessee border.

With winter in full swing, many are heading to the slopes and enjoying other winter recreational activities in our area.

Aircraft battling fires raging through the Los Angeles area are dropping more than water: Hundreds of thousands of gallons of hot-pink fire suppressant have been dumped ahead of the flames in a desperate effort to stop them before they destroy more neighborhoods.

U.S. officials are proposing increased logging on federal lands across the Pacific Northwest under changes to a sweeping forest management plan that’s been in place for three decades.

A career archaeologist with the U.S. Forest Service says managers have been engaging in irresponsible and illegal behavior that has resulted in damage to Native American sites across the forested slopes of North Carolina.

With destructive wildfires burning on both coasts, fire officials might use jargon unfamiliar to residents of states where such big blazes are relatively rare.

The Biden administration has asked an appeals court to revive a Trump-era rule that lifted remaining Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in the U.S. If successful, the move would put the predators under states’ oversight and would allow hunting in the Great Lakes region, which had been suspended by a court order.

It was the largest and most destructive wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history.

The Blue Ridge Parkway is back open after crews worked to clear debris from the Matts Creek wildfire, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The U.S. Forest Service said Matts Creek Wildfire has grown to 5,148 acres and is two percent contained.

The Matts Creek wildfire, which broke out Sunday, has grown to 2,700 acres, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The fire spans about the size of 1,900 football fields.

A federal judge has found that a Trump-era rule change that allowed for the logging of old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest violates several laws.

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.

Archaeologists have been gingerly digging up the ground at a site in central Louisiana this summer to unearth and preserve evidence of prehistoric occupation.

A partnership between the U.S. Forest Service and historically Black colleges or universities is opening the eyes of students of color who never pictured themselves fighting forest fires.

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.

A judge has ruled that the U.S. Forest Service can keep using chemical retardant dropped from aircraft to fight wildfires, despite finding that the practice pollutes streams in western states in violation of federal law.

A federal judge is weighing whether to severely limit the government’s use of aerial fire retardant to combat wildfires following arguments by environmentalists who are concerned about water pollution.

A legal dispute in Montana could drastically curb the government’s use of aerial fire retardant to combat wildfires.

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.

New Mexico's governor has stepped into the fight over how federal land managers are eradicating wild cows in the Gila Wilderness.

U.S. forest managers in New Mexico are moving ahead with plans to kill feral cattle they say are threatening public safety and natural resources in the nation's first designated wilderness.

The Biden administration is directing $930 million toward reducing wildfire dangers in 10 western states by clearing trees and underbrush from national forests.

A winter storm packing powerful winds, heavy rain and potentially several feet of snow is blowing into the Sierra Nevada.

The head of the U.S. Forest Service has denounced the arrest by an Oregon sheriff of a Forest Service employee after a planned burn in a national forest spread onto private land.

The U.S. government is resuming prescribed burning of National Forest lands across the nation to clear brush and small trees after a three-month pause to review and respond to climate change and risks of runaway wildfires.

The U.S. Forest Service says it will take emergency action soon to save giant sequoias by speeding up projects to clear underbrush to protect the world’s largest trees from the increasing threat of wildfires.

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.

Wildfires in northern Arizona are crossing land rich with signs of human existence through centuries.

The head of the U.S. Forest Service is suspending planned burning operations to clear out brush and small trees at all national forests while his agency conducts a 90-day review of protocols and practices.

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.

Calmer weather conditions in northern New Mexico have helped over 1,000 firefighters battling the nation's largest active wildfire.

Calmer weather conditions in northern New Mexico are helping over 1,000 firefighters battling the nation's largest active wildfire.

Thousands of firefighters are battling destructive wildfires in the Southwest as more residents are preparing to evacuate during the weekend in northern New Mexico.

Thousands of firefighters have continued to slow the advance of destructive wildfires in the Southwest.

You might notice smoke in parts of our area on Sunday.

Dozens of firefighters are working to extinguish a wildfire in Amherst County that started Tuesday afternoon.

Thinning the dense stands of trees across millions of acres of U.S. forestlands is a central piece of the Biden administration’s $50 billion plan to protect against deadly firestorms that have been exploding across western states.

You may see or smell smoke in parts of the area due to these burns

Firefighters and numerous studies credit forest thinning projects with helping to save communities like those near Lake Tahoe.

Aluminum wraps designed to protect homes from flames are getting attention as wildfires burn in California.

The U.S. Forest Service has closed a popular recreational wilderness area in northeastern Minnesota as the state’s largest active wildfire threatens the 1-million-acre property.

Dry and windy weather is dogging firefighters’ efforts to contain destructive fires that are devouring the bone-dry forests of drought-stricken Northern California.

Thousands of homes remain threatened by the nation's largest wildfire in Northern California, and firefighters across the West face a high danger of new blazes erupting because of unstable weather.

Firefighters battling the Dixie Fire face “another critical day” as thunderstorms pushed flames closer to two towns in the forestlands of Northern California.

The U.S. Forest Service said Friday it’s operating in crisis mode, fully deploying firefighters and maxing out its support system as wildfires continue to break out across the U.S. West.

Firefighters are struggling to contain an exploding Northern California wildfire under blazing temperatures as another heat wave hits the U.S. West this weekend.

Veteran forester Randy Moore has been named chief of the U.S. Forest Service, the first African American to lead the agency in its 116-year history.

Another hidden treasure in Alleghany County is the Longdale Recreation Area, also known as Green Pastures.

Crews across the U.S. West are lighting controlled burns and taking other steps to prepare for the 2021 fire season that follows the worst one on record.

Scientists found that an unconventional way of reducing the frequency of deer-auto collisions could be allowing wolves to roam a landscape.

Congress mandated that the land be transferred to Resolution Copper no later than 60 days after the final environmental review was published. “Oak Flat is still on death row,” he said. “Essentially, they're just changing the execution date.”Dan 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.

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. “I am very disappointed but I’m 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.

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.

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.

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. – 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 administration’s 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.

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.

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. – 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.

Gavin Newsom of doing a “terrible job” 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) — 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 — 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).

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)

(Maxar Technologies via AP)LOS ANGELES – 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. “Southern California Edison understands this is a difficult time for the many people who are being impacted by the Bobcat fire,” 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.

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. It’s very demanding — not just physically, but mentally.”Morton 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.

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 – 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. “Charlie was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times,” said U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen.

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. “Charlie was a well-respected leader who was always there for his squad and his crew at the toughest times,” said U.S. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen.

(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.

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.

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.

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.