Mountain West News Bureau

A multi-state project is working to provide electric vehicle charging stations and corridors to scenic areas around the Mountain West. ChargeWest is working with state agencies in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona to make this a reality.

The recent flooding around Yellowstone National Park also created challenges for gateway towns like Gardner, Red Lodge and Cooke City in Montana. That includes lost homes and possibly lost livelihoods. For travelers who can no longer access the park through those towns, there’s another Montana entrance: West Yellowstone, the most popular gateway to the park.

A panel of fire science experts convened at the Desert Research Institute (DRI) in Reno to discuss the extent of the devastation caused by climate-driven wildfires and their predictions for the 2022 fire season.

The U.S. Supreme Court has handed abortion decisions to states. That means state supreme courts will likely have to review what abortion rights people have under state constitutions. In the Mountain West, there are already several lawsuits about abortion laws that these state courts have to review. That includes one suit in Idaho and another in Utah, which has led to a temporary stay of that law going into effect.

As part of Wyoming Public Media’s ‘I respectfully disagree’ series, four panelists discussed issues surrounding wild horses in the state on a Facebook live. Stakeholders spoke for an hour about topics like herd management, fertility control and holding facilities.

Throughout the Mountain West, Colorado and Arizona already have paid sick leave and Nevada has a broader paid leave law.

From the early 1800s til 1969 the federal government forced Indigenous children into boarding schools to assimilate them into white culture. Department of the Interior officials and tribal leaders testified in Congress Wednesday about an ongoing investigation into the over 400 federal schools.

As wildfire season picks up, some communities in the Mountain West are trying to reduce fire risks. That includes finding new ways to celebrate America’s independence.

A study released recently by the U.S. Geological Survey and Colorado State University shows gelding wild horses didn’t really affect their behavior or have a long-term impact on herd size. But it's another tool worth considering while addressing the overpopulation of wild horses and burros on public lands.

Colorado River water managers are facing a monumental task. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has asked seven western states to commit to an unprecedented amount of conservation and do it before a deadline later this summer. This comes amid shrinking water levels in the nation's largest reservoirs.