Montana

Wyoming is the latest state to let electric companies off the hook if they create a wildfire mitigation plan. But homeowners can still sue if utilities fail to follow those plans.

The Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes and four conservation groups filed a motion to intervene to defend the park’s plan in court. It's being challenged by the state of Montana.

Wyoming could be next to require adult sites verify age.

Advocates say pregnancy centers are under threat in the post-Roe era.

The state of Montana wants the park to maintain 3,000 bison. This was a population target outlined in a court mediated settlement following a previous lawsuit that Montana filed 30 years ago.

Grizzly advocates want the species to be treated as one “metapopulation” — rather than separate islands throughout the Northern Rockies.

More than 60 grizzlies have been struck by trains in Montana and Idaho over the last 15 years. Some say warning systems could help.

In Wyoming, the far-right caucus has been particularly successful. After the recent election, the group will hold a majority in the state house.

An evacuation order is still in effect for the residents of Borderline Estates and Ranchets. The Short Draw Fire is expected to continue to grow due to forecasted winds.

The grizzly bear is one of the more controversial species in the West. It’s listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. But some experts and landowners think the population in and around Yellowstone National Park should be considered recovered. Meanwhile, some environmentalists say that in order for that grizzly population to be fully healthy, it needs more genetic diversity. One way to do that is by allowing grizzlies from a central Montana ecosystem to travel south and breed with bears in the Yellowstone Ecosystem, called creating connectivity. But that 100 miles or so between the two ecosystems is populated with over 200,000 people. Two communities in that 100 mile swath are preparing for the nearly inevitable arrival of grizzlies.