Why Bark Beetles are Chewing Through U.S. Forests
The conifer forests of the North American west have been under a massive assault over the past decade by bark beetles: one species alone, the mountain pine beetle, has killed more than 70,000 square miles’ worth of trees, equivalent to the area of Washington State, and two recent studies have shed some light on how climate change is helping fuel… Read More
Working Wonders Without Water Out West
In the long rain shadow of the Cascade Mountains, where dryland wheat farmers have eked out livings for more than a century, climate change is very much an issue of the present. The rain gauge is always in the back of the mind for Mike Nichols, a wheat farmer cultivating 20,0000 acres across two counties in south-central Washington state. It has to… Read More
In West, September Brought Record Heat and Dry Weather
At Needles, California, which is also located in the unforgiving Mojave Desert, the average monthly temperature of 91.3°F tied for the hottest September on record. In addition, Reno, Nevada had its warmest September since records began there in 1888.… Read More
Report: The Age of Western Wildfires
The 2012 wildfire season isn't over yet, but already this year is shaping up to be the worst on record for fires in the American West. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, with two months still to go in the fire season, the total area already burned this year is 30 percent more than in an average year and fires burning right now acros… Read More
Raging Fire Season Highlights Human Cost of Firefighting
Earlier this month, a 20-year-old digging a fire line in the Idaho mountains was killed by a falling tree, making her the 12th person to die in forest firefighting operations around the country this year. When I attended her funeral a few days later, nearly 300 of her fellow U.S. Forest Service firefighters lined up outside Moscow, Idaho’s, Church … Read More
Drought Prompts Natural Disaster Declaration in 26 States
The most widespread drought in the U.S. since 1988 has prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to issue a natural disaster declaration for about 1,000 counties in 26 states, making farm operators eligible for low interest emergency loans.… Read More
Preventing Fires, Before Everything’s Aflame
Wildfires have been national news this summer. Massive, destructive burns in Colorado and New Mexico have emblazoned websites and T.V. screens across the country. But just as the monsoon rains roll into the Southwest bringing much needed moisture, the nation’s gaze over the fires will move on too. The wildfires are just the eye-catching … Read More
Heat Wave Adds to Wildfire Woes, Expands East
The heat, combined with drought conditions and afternoon thunderstorms that brought lightning but little rain, helped create ideal conditions for massive wildfires in Colorado. A thunderstorm-related wind shift caused the Waldo Canyon Fire near Colorado Springs to advance on the state’s second-largest city, prompting evacuation orders for at least … Read More
