The Landscape

Uranium mining has resumed in the U.S. after 8 years, impacting the Grand Canyon. Topics discussed include uranium mining operations, government subsidies, legal battles near the Grand Canyon, risks to the environment and tribal communities, and the complexities of the uranium boom on the Colorado Plateau.

Kate and Aaron are joined by I Ling Thompson, CEO of The Foundation for America’s Public Lands. The Foundation is the official charitable partner of the Bureau of Land Management. Its job is to engage with local communities and the public on behalf of the agency. Thompson discusses the challenges the BLM faces and how […] The post Inside the Foundation for America’s Public Lands appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Exploring private land conservation through conservation easements with Colorado Open Lands. Topics include uranium mining, Natural Asset Companies as opponents, and Native tribes reclaiming their land. Discussing the importance of private lands in the national conservation effort of protecting 30% of land and water by 2030.

Jennifer Rokala, the Executive Director of the Center for Western Priorities, joins the hosts to recap significant conservation efforts in 2023. They discuss the ban on logging in the Tongass National Forest and the Biden administration's protective measures for Bristol Bay and Minnesota's Wilderness. Community advocacy shines through with a public meeting for the proposed Bajnaav Show Ita Kukveni monument. They also tackle the urgency of finalizing public land rules for 2024 and the growing momentum for new national monument campaigns.

Kate and Aaron are joined by Dr. Dominick DellaSala, Chief Scientist at Wild Heritage, a project of the Earth Island Institute. We had Dr. DellaSala on the Landscape back in June to talk about the Biden administration’s efforts to protect old growth forests. At the time, the U.S. Forest Service had just released data that […] The post Behind the headlines: old growth logging ban appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Kate and Aaron are joined by Rachel Morgan, author of Sins of the Shovel: Looting, Murder, and the Evolution of American Archaeology. Rachel is an archaeologist based near Washington, DC, and her book, which was published last month, is largely focused on the Southwest. She gives a detailed account of the Wetherill family, which settled […] The post Sins of the shovel: How archaeology evolved from pot hunting to science appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Aaron and Kate are joined by Julia Stuble, Wyoming State Senior Manager with the Wilderness Society. Julia is a Wyomingite who’s lived and worked in the state for decades. She’s here to talk about a proposed Bureau of Land Management resource management plan, or RMP, for southwest Wyoming that’s making waves in the state. The […] The post How a Wyoming land use plan ended up in a misinformation war appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Aaron and Kate are joined by Laura Peterson, staff attorney with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, to talk about the Bureau of Land Management’s recently finalized Labyrinth Rims/Gemini Bridges Travel Management Plan. The plan will guide land management decisions for a 300,000-acre landscape to the north of Moab for years to come, and will help […] The post Balancing trails, wilderness, and ATV’s in Moab’s backcountry appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

The podcast explores the Conservation Toolbox report, highlighting federal land protection tools like National Parks and wildlife corridors. It discusses the challenges of comparing conservation tools and emphasizes the importance of understanding diverse management approaches. The episode also covers the economic significance of recreation on public lands and efforts to protect the Wyoming Toad habitat.

Kate and Aaron are joined by Tim Davis, founder and executive director of Friends of the Owyhee, and Karly Foster, campaign manager at the Oregon Natural Desert Association, to talk about how we can better protect the Owyhee Canyonlands. The Owyhee Canyonlands span from southeast Oregon into southwest Idaho, and it is one of the […] The post Protecting the wild, vast Owyhee Canyonlands appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.