One of the authors of the recent U.N. climate report says getting urban development right is crucial to addressing the climate crisis.
Nick Bowlin
Nick Bowlin is a contributing editor for High Country News. Email him at nickbowlin@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor.
Posted inArticles
Will the EPA partially close a Wyoming coal plant that’s one of the nation’s largest polluters?
The decision affects the local economy and air quality — and could create an opening for renewable energy.
Posted inArticles
Interior devotes billions to plugging old oil wells. Is it enough?
The agency under-counted abandoned wells by more than half, which means the effort covers only a fraction of the cost.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2022: Water Rights and Responsibilities
Gold country: A precious metal, a mining mega-corp and a captive workforce
In 2019, two gold-mining giants joined forces, with huge consequences for the Northern Nevada community and economy.
Posted inDecember 1, 2021: Visions of Wildness
Vacation resort replaces affordable housing in Teton Valley
Once-affordable towns near Jackson Hole have become real estate magnets since the pandemic.
Posted inJune 1, 2021: Once and Future Fires
How ‘sustainable’ is California’s groundwater sustainability act?
Numerous issues around equity and the plan’s rollout loom.
Posted inApril 1, 2021: Holding Fast
Energy companies have left Colorado with billions of dollars in oil and gas cleanup
As the state tries to reform its relationship to drilling, an expensive task awaits.
Posted inMarch 1, 2021: The Rough Road Ahead
Will the climate crisis tap out the Colorado River?
Water availability is going from bad to worse in the seven states that rely on the drought-stricken river.
Posted inArticles
Will New Mexico learn from coal’s decline?
The state relies on oil and gas revenue, but the industry faces an uncertain future.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2021: No Place Like Home
When COVID hit, a Colorado county kicked out second-home owners. They hit back.
How a group of nonresident homeowners tried to influence a rural Colorado election.
Posted inNovember 1, 2020: When the Smoke Clears
In Las Vegas, the burdens of remote learning rest heavy on working parents
One of the nation’s largest school districts is trying to provide laptops and Wi-Fi to more than 300,000 students.
Posted inArticles
Dispatch from an irreversibly changed New Mexico
Laura Paskus’s new book examines wildfire, drilling on the Navajo Nation and climate grief.
Posted inSeptember 1, 2020: The Next West
The old-school organizers who got it done on Zoom
How the country’s oldest organizing group won COVID-19 relief for undocumented immigrants in California.
Posted inArticles, En español
Las políticas de protección de vivienda que están frenando la gentrificación en San Francisco
A consecuencia del COVID-19 algunas ciudades de California están creando protecciones para los arrendatarios.
Posted inAugust 1, 2020: Infectious Ideologies
The housing policy that’s turning back gentrification
In the wake of COVID-19, some California cities are introducing tenant protections.
Posted inJune 1, 2020: Dissent at a Distance
Lawsuit challenges acting BLM director’s Senate confirmation avoidance
William Perry Pendley had his tenure extended in early May.
Posted inArticles
Ailing oil companies get a pass on royalties
According to documents obtained by High Country News, the BLM bypassed normal processes to provide pandemic relief.
Posted inArticles
Hunting and fishing provide food security in the time of COVID-19
But virus fears and travel restrictions could impact big game season in the fall.
Posted inArticles
How Mormon history helps explain today’s public-land fights
Betsy Gaines Quammen’s new book looks at the Bundy family and religion’s connection to the Western landscape.