A week ago, eight prominent scientists sent a letter to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) declaring that the agency’s proposed Tri-State Fuel Break (TSFB) is flawed and will endanger […]
Critique of “Fire Suppression” Mythology
High elevation forests like the mountain hemlock seen here at Crater Lake have long intervals between fires. They only burn when there is the right combination of climate/weather. Fire […]
Mexican wolf killings expose a dark underbelly of western culture
*Trigger warning: Animal cruelty and wolf abuse discussed below For over a year, my colleague at Western Watersheds Project and I have been paging through gory reports of dead livestock, […]
Wolverine ESA Listing Effort Demonstrates Political Influence
Glacier National Park is home to 30-40 wolverine. Photo George Wuerthner On December 14, 2020, 24 organizations and one individual (me) filed two different lawsuits to challenge the U.S. […]
Does Cattle Grazing Preclude Large Blazes?
If cattle graze to bare soil, it is true that fires are slowed under such conditions, but the ecological impacts are enormous. Photo George Wuerthner When I worked for the […]
Deschutes River Habitat Conservation Plan Fails to Address Climate Change
Upper Deschutes River is essentially an irrigation cancel for irrigators. Photo George Wuerthner The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will soon decide whether to approve a Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) […]
Thunder Basin Grasslands Amendment License to Kill Prairie Dogs
Black-tailed praire dog. Photo by George Wuerthner Years ago, I went out of my way to visit the Thunder Basin National Grassland. With a name like “Thunder Basin,” how could […]
Livestock industry’s campaign to get rid of wild horses is a scam to cheat the taxpayers
There’s an organized campaign underway to get wild horses off America’s western public lands, and the livestock industry is both its primary salesman and beneficiary. It’s all about the money […]