COLORADO SPRINGS – America’s wild places are increasingly swamped under a deluge of sightseers and adventure seekers. In 2013, national parks drew almost 274 million visitors nationwide. In 2017, they drew more than 330 million. In Colorado, visitation at Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve during that period nearly doubled. The short-term economic benefits…
COLORADO SPRINGS – Across the west, river systems are flowing at record low levels, snowpack is decreasing, farmers are struggling to successfully grow their crops, and pollution and debris is covering ecosystems. Problems in the west are threatening the future of pristine wilderness, and challenging communities connected to them. Overuse and drought in Colorado and…
ROCKY MOUNTAIN ARSENAL NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE — American Bison, a species that has greatly declined in number, roam on an open, recovering prairie, grazing on freshly-burned land, the Denver skyline in the background. Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is an ex-chemical and weapons manufacturing site turned refuge. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been…
WINNIE — Driving through rural east Texas, the roads are lined with farm plots as far as the eye can see covered in corn, wheat, and lots and lots of rice. The town of Winnie (population 3,254) is home to Frost Ranch, a leading rice producer. Perfectly straight rows of green rice alternate with muddy…
ROCKY MOUNTAIN ARSENAL – Prairie used to cover hundreds of millions of acres of North America, from Canada to Mexico and from the Rocky Mountains to eastern Missouri. Much of it has since been plowed over. “There’s not very much of it anymore,” Rocky Mountain Arsenal (RMA) National Wildlife Refuge manager David Lucas said in…
COLORADO— Millions of tourists fly every year into Denver International Airport hoping to see the natural beauty Colorado is known for. Huge signs on the walls as they arrive exclaim “WELCOME TO COLORFUL COLORADO,” against color-saturated pictures of people straddling mountain bikes looking astonished at mountain vista they find themselves in, and skiing chest deep…
COLORADO SPRINGS – Colorado’s Proposition 112, that would have required 2,500 foot buffers between new oil and gas drilling sites and occupied buildings such as homes and schools, failed last week in the state’s general election. Industry lobbyists and campaigners spent $30 million arguing that the grassroots ballot measure threatened to significantly limit the extraction…
COMMERCE CITY – Short grass prairie is starting to re-emerge at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge just outside of Denver. Flocks of birds move across the sky along with airplanes from Denver International Airport. The 15,000 acre refuge has to handle more than just the wildlife. The refuge’s urban location means that, in many…
COLORADO SPRINGS — For the liberal elite, superfluous consumption isn’t fashionable anymore. If you have money, you aren’t supposed to buy more—you’re supposed to buy better. In an era when plastics threaten the environment, beverage drinkers are asked to find alternative straws. When the agricultural industry threatens global warming, wealthy millennials buy vegan products from…
COLORADO – Rivers in the West are drying up, and increased incentives for conservation may be the natural next step. Droughts can have dire ecological and economic effects. This would threaten Colorado’s wildlife, ecosystems, and be detrimental to the health and agricultural practices of people throughout the Western states. Recently, farmers in Colorado’s San Luis…
