Articles Archives - High Country News https://www.hcn.org/category/articles/ A nonprofit independent magazine of unblinking journalism that shines a light on all of the complexities of the West. Fri, 15 Mar 2024 16:25:05 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.hcn.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/cropped-HCN_Logo-Monogram_White_Sq-2-32x32.png Articles Archives - High Country News https://www.hcn.org/category/articles/ 32 32 229054741 Audio: Listen to the Earth breathing https://www.hcn.org/articles/listen-to-the-earth-breathing/ Mon, 18 Mar 2024 08:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=323355 Wupatki Pueblo in Northern Arizona.

Blowholes are more common than you think.

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]]> 323355 What rural homelessness looks like https://www.hcn.org/articles/what-rural-homelessness-looks-like/ Wed, 13 Mar 2024 08:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=323310

The lessons learned after spending months embedded with unhoused communities in Oregon.

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]]> 323310 Could building on public land address the housing crisis? https://www.hcn.org/articles/could-building-on-public-land-address-the-housing-crisis/ Thu, 07 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=323230

The West has a plethora of land and a shortage of houses. Some are wondering if a solution lies within.

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]]> 323230 Disaster disparities in the West https://www.hcn.org/articles/disaster-disparities-in-the-west/ Mon, 04 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=323150

The risk of climate catastrophe is complex, but people of color often face ‘unnatural hazards.’

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]]> 323150 A new law seeks to tame mineral extraction at the Great Salt Lake https://www.hcn.org/articles/a-new-law-seeks-to-tame-mineral-extraction-at-the-great-salt-lake/ Mon, 04 Mar 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=323181

The new limits may represent a shift in Utah’s cozy relationship with industry.

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]]> 323181 The good, the bad and the ugly of the state legislative season https://www.hcn.org/articles/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-of-the-state-legislative-season/ Thu, 29 Feb 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=323036

While Congress does nothing, Western state lawmakers pass a flurry of consequential and/or crazy — bills.

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]]> 323036 Is it cowboy poetry if it’s not written by a cowboy? https://www.hcn.org/articles/is-it-cowboy-poetry-if-its-not-written-by-a-cowboy/ Wed, 28 Feb 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=322955

An event protesting the cowboy poetry festival faces questions of growth and authenticity.

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]]> 322955 How states make money off tribal lands https://www.hcn.org/articles/how-states-make-money-off-tribal-lands/ Wed, 28 Feb 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=322974

Ten states own 1.6 million acres of land within 83 tribal nations’ reservations. How did they get there?

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]]> 322974 Oil industry profits don’t pay for cleanup https://www.hcn.org/articles/oil-industry-profits-dont-pay-for-cleanup/ Mon, 26 Feb 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=322778 Pump jacks on a ridgeline in Wyoming.

A failure of regulation has allowed industry to avoid the true cost of cleaning up its unplugged wells.

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]]> 322778 The great Clean Girl vanishing act https://www.hcn.org/articles/the-great-clean-girl-vanishing-act/ Fri, 23 Feb 2024 09:00:00 +0000 https://www.hcn.org/?p=322703

The search for an ‘invisible’ perfume is rooted in frontier aesthetics.

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