Conservation groups ready to go to court over endangered species harmed by north-central Washington dam
Today, river advocacy groups notified federal agencies and a local public utility of their intent to sue over harm inflicted on Similkameen River endangered steelhead and threatened bull trout by Enloe Dam. New video evidence shows fish at the base of the dam unable...
Yellowstone grizzlies: Court blocks ID, WY trophy hunts for 14 more days
MISSOULA, Mont. —Today, a U.S. District Court judge extended a temporary restraining order to block planned grizzly bear trophy hunts in Idaho and Wyoming for 14 more days while he prepares a ruling. The judge may only renew a temporary restraining order such as this...
Federal appeals court upholds Oregon suction dredge mining ban
Portland, Oregon - Today the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a new Oregon state law banning motorized mining operations, such as suction dredging, in streams that support runs of wild salmon and steelhead trout. The court rejected miners’ assertions that the...
Yellowstone grizzlies: Court blocks ID, WY trophy hunts
MISSOULA, Mont. —Today, a U.S. District Court judge granted wildlife advocates' motion for a temporary restraining order to block planned grizzly bear trophy hunts in Idaho and Wyoming for at least 14 days. This came after a hearing regarding a high-profile case over...
Court victory protects clean water and wildlife in Ochoco National Forest
Prineville, OR—In a preliminary ruling today, Judge Patricia Sullivan rejected a U.S. Forest Service plan to add 137 miles of off road vehicle trails in central Oregon’s Ochoco National Forest through old-growth forest. The plan would have expanded the Forest’s...
Zinke abandons protection for Wild and Scenic Chetco River
In this 50th anniversary year of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, river advocates, fishermen, conservationists, and members of the Oregon congressional delegation lamented the Trump administration's decision to abandon protections for the nationally significant Wild...
Court decision prevents unstudied fracking in Santa Fe National Forest
In a victory for New Mexico's air, climate, and water, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico today rejected a 2015 oil and gas lease sale covering 19,788 acres of oil and gas leases on the Santa Fe National Forest. The Bureau of Land Management failed...
Udall, Heinrich introduce legislation to codify no-drilling buffer zone around Chaco
Statement from Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment, the Western Environmental Law Center, San Juan Citizens Alliance, Sierra Club Rio Grande Chapter, WildEarth Guardians, and Natural Resources Defense Council: Taos, NM – New Mexico Senators Tom Udall and...
Environmental advocates, local landowners move to protect water, climate in Montana
Great Falls – Today, WildEarth Guardians, the Montana Environmental Information Center, and three local landowners moved to protect Montana’s clean water and climate from oil and gas drilling and fracking. The groups, represented by Western Environmental Law Center...
Lawsuit targets federal shell game hiding fracking’s harm to Colorado communities, wildlife
DENVER— Conservation groups today sued Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and the Bureau of Land Management for approving new leases to allow fracking on more than 45,000 acres in western Colorado, including within communities and within a half-mile of a K-12 public...