Trumpism and extremism didn’t fly during the 2022 midterms.
Jonathan Thompson
Jonathan Thompson is a contributing editor at High Country News. He is the author of Sagebrush Empire: How a Remote Utah County Became the Battlefront of American Public Lands. Follow him @LandDesk
Posted inArticles
On its 100th birthday, the Colorado River Compact shows its age
The foundational document was flawed from the start.
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Bighorn-lovers butt heads with Vail Resorts’ affordable housing
The ski industry giant wants to build workforce housing in wild sheep habitat.
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The green metal mining boom is on
Now is not the time to loosen mining regulations.
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Will the Supreme Court gut the Clean Water Act?
The justices could remove federal protection from 80% of the Southwest’s streams.
Posted inOctober 1, 2022: Making Refuge
Races to watch throughout the West
The midterm elections promise to be a referendum on Joe Biden — and Donald Trump.
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The Green New Deal didn’t crash California’s grid
Climate change is wrecking the electricity system.
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The divide over Diablo
Greens battle greens over the fate of California’s last nuke plant.
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The Colorado River’s alfalfa problem
Growing less hay is the only way to keep the river’s water system from collapsing
Posted inSeptember 1, 2022: Going Under
Climate and Congress
Historic political action, but is it enough?
Posted inSeptember 1, 2022: Going Under
Can ravaged economies be healed with a restoration industry?
Cleaning up the West could be as lucrative as wrecking it.
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The climate bill’s blind spot
A closer look at the good and the bad of specific provisions in the historic climate bill, the Inflation Reduction Act.
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Climate game changer? Or fossil fuel giveaway?
A break down of the Inflation Reduction Act.
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The monsoon can’t save us
An unusually rainy Southwest summer is welcome — but much more is needed to end the water crisis.
Posted inAugust 1, 2022: Our Fiery Future
The West’s forever fire season
How climate change makes wildfire more likely to happen all year round.
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The rise of the restoration economy
Filling the economic void left by the extraction economy by healing the land.
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The funky politics of wildfire right now
After New Mexico’s record-breaking fires, the politics of wildfire are morphing into weird configurations.
Posted inJuly 1, 2022: Living with Rivers
The hydrogen blues (and greens and grays)
Is this wonder fuel truly green — or just another fossil fuel in disguise?
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The San Juan Basin’s fossil fuel transition slowed by economic and cultural bonds
The region’s history with prosperity in the oil and gas industry looms over conversations about how to diversify its economy.
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Will carbon capture help clean New Mexico’s power, or delay its transition?
A virtually unknown company has a $1.4 billion plan to extend the life of the state’s largest coal-fired power plant. Critics say it’s likely to be a costly distraction from a just transition.