Hold your horses: Planned Tonto Forest roundup delayed to September
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Forest Service said Thursday it has put a planned roundup of up to 100 horses in the Tonto National Forest on hold until September, when Congress returns from recess.
Fighting fire with fire: Prescribed burns take aim at wildfire threats
WASHINGTON - As bureaucrats in Washington were complaining about growing costs of wildfires Wednesday, forest officials in Arizona were lighting a forest fire - but the two groups are working toward the same goal.
Forest Service says wildfire growth threatens to consume agency budget
WASHINGTON - Costs to battle wildfires will consume almost all of the U.S. Forest Service budget in 10 years unless Congress changes the way firefighting efforts are funded, the agency warned Wednesday.
Arizona environmentalists cheer EPA Clean Power Plan, utilities wary
WASHINGTON - Arizona environmental groups cheered the final version of the Clean Power Plan unveiled Monday by the Environmental Protection Agency, a first-ever national standard that aims to cut power plant carbon emissions by a third by 2030.
Apache vow fight, lawmakers push bill, to block Oak Flat land swap
WASHINGTON - The protest to preserve Oak Flat turned heated Wednesday as San Carlos Apache tribal members, rallying at the Capitol, vowed to do whatever it takes to reverse a deal to turn Oak Flat over to a mining company.
Apache bring Oak Flat copper mine protest to White House, Capitol
WASHINGTON - After weeks of taking their message to churches and tribes around the country, a caravan of San Carlos Apache members sang and prayed in Washington Tuesday for the preservation of sacred sites in southeast Arizona.
Feds approve 25-year extension for mining, burning coal at Navajo plant
WASHINGTON - Federal officials Friday approved a multiyear deal to allow expanded mining of coal on Navajo lands and continued burning of it at the nearby Four Corners Power Plant, along with other measures.
House OKs bill aimed at curbing wildfires; critics call it ‘bad for forests’
WASHINGTON - The House voted 262-167 Thursday for a bill that supporters said will reduce wildfires by streamlining the process for managing federal forests before and after outbreaks.
Feds move one Arizona species toward endangered status, one the other way
WASHINGTON - The federal government moved the Arizona toad closer to endangered status this week while dimming hopes for the gray wolf, which moved a step closer to losing endangered species protection altogether.
Safety sometimes lost in the excitement of Fourth of July
Fireworks, parades, picnics, barbecues — and sometimes monsoon storms — are all part of Independence Day celebration festivities in Phoenix, but many underestimate the risks involved with the use of fireworks.
Yuma official tells Congress aging water facilities need ‘major’ repair
WASHINGTON - Yuma water official Tom Davis said the West's aging water infrastructure is beyond patching and in need of "major replacement and rehabilitation" - but that can't happen until federal officials inventory the problem.
