Water in the West is life
Working forests, protected water: safeguarding critical watersheds in Western Colorado
On Colorado’s Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison national forests, water for the region begins as snow in high-elevation locations before flowing down to creeks, reservoirs and irrigation systems that support communities across the Western Slope. It’s a quiet process, but it supports nearly every part of life downstream. (Forest Service video By Travis Weger) On Colorado’s Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison national forests, water for the region begins as snow in high-elevation locations...-
Water in the West is life
April 16,2026
On Colorado’s Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison national forests, water for the region begins as snow in high-elevation locations before flowing down to creeks, reservoirs and irrigation systems -
Putting fire on the ground
April 14,2026
In places like the Pike-San Isabel National Forests across the country, fire has shaped the land for thousands of years. Many forests depend on fire to stay healthy. Fire cleans out old needles -
Reducing fuels on steep slopes
March 24,2026
Tahoe National Forest’s North Yuba watershed is a highly productive water source for downstream residents and the agricultural industry across northern California. Although it is the largest -
The fire that never starts
March 9,2026
When 95% of wildfires are started by humans — especially in a part of the country like Southern California with 25 million people — stopping wildfires before they start is a lofty goal. But for Nicole -
Editor’s note: Across the West, land managers are working together to accomplish what they cannot do alone — to restore massive areas affected by past wildfire while also strategically planning how to -
Where Olympians are made
February 6,2026
For Olympic medalist Shannon Dunn-Downing, the road to the podium didn’t begin in a private club or elite training facility. It began on public lands in the mountains of Colorado. Public lands -
Forest power: woodchips to electricity
January 29,2026
Mackenzie Castruita the Business Manager for West Biofuels explains some of the innerworkings at the Hat Creek Bioenergy facility in Burney, California and how public lands and partners are coming -
Breaking ground on hope
January 13,2026
Walking amongst well-ordered rows of bicycles and racks of “Rebuild the Ride” t-shirts swaying lightly on their hangers, Adventure Damascus Bicycles owner Michael Wright takes a moment to make sure -
What’s on their skin?
January 22,2026
At the end of a long shift, black stains cover yellow Nomex shirts, telling the story of grueling hours spent on the fireline. Across the West each summer, wildland firefighters collapse into sleeping
