Pine beetles and drought is leaving Wyoming and other states more susceptible to wildfires than at any point in recent memory, yet the federal fire policy doesn’t seem to be keeping up with the new climate. Wyoming lawmakers are trying to solve the problem.
Study Claims Yellowstone Forests Could Disappear Due To Climate Change
Like the enormous herds wild of bison that once thundered across the west, in coming years the forests of Yellowstone may, too, become few and far between.
That’s according to the new study The Coming Climate: Ecological Impacts of Climate Change On Teton County, commissioned by the Chartour Institute. Corinna Riginos is a research ecologist and co- authored the report. She tells Wyoming Public Radio’s Caroline Ballard the data itself isn’t new – but they’re using it to make predictions about what could happen to the ecosystem and economy in Northwestern Wyoming.
Wyoming's Ski Resorts Want Your Vacation Dollars This Summer
Summer is finally here, and many of us are gearing up for a sun-soaked vacation. This year Cowboy Staters will visit national parks or maybe take a road trip to ocean beaches... and some will spend their vacation at one of the state’s ski resorts. As Wyoming Public Radio’s Miles Bryan reports, many of Wyoming’s ski resorts are trying to become year-round businesses.
Without Medicaid Expansion Lawmakers Try To Help Hospitals
Earlier this year when the legislature voted down Medicaid expansion, lawmakers realized that some hospitals were struggling to make up for the fact that some people cannot afford to pay their medical bills. So after a lot of discussion, they provided roughly three million dollars to be spread among the smaller rural hospitals. But some thought that was not enough, so two legislative committees are looking into what else can be done to help.
Pharmacists Want To Be Recognized As Health Care Providers
Pharmacists are currently not recognized as health care providers and despite their obvious knowledge of medications, they are not currently allowed to help people manage their medication. There are two bills in Congress that could change that. Tom Menighan is the CEO of the American Pharmacists Association and he say this would help those in rural areas.
Groups Worry About BLM Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Plan
Protestors say the BLM office in Montana is trying to wipe out the state’s last herd of wild horses. That herd lives in the Pryor Mountains in Montana and Wyoming. The group marched into the Billings Field office recently, demanding the agency abandon plans to round up horses and use birth control on the mares.
Pinedale High Schoolers Discover Their Local Sage Grouse's Days Are Numbered
In the small town of Pinedale, people have a lot of opinions about sage grouse. That’s because Pinedale just happens to sit in the middle of some of the best sage grouse habitat in the state. It’s also in the middle of some of the best oil and gas fields in the country. So when a Pinedale math teacher joined forces with a sage grouse conservation project, it started a community conversation.
Grid Guinea Pigs On A Tiny Danish Island
Across the nation -- and even in Wyoming -- power companies are adding more renewable energy to their systems. That creates new challenges for the electric grid… challenges that this country is just beginning to grapple with. In Denmark, the transition is happening more quickly - by 2030 the country’s power system is supposed to be 100 percent renewable.
Fort Washakie Stories Part IV: "We're The Next Generation"
Not so long ago, schools for Native Americans punished kids for speaking their languages or practicing their traditions. Today—in response to that history—schools on Wyoming’s Wind River Reservation try to integrate Native culture into everyday learning.
