Letters From the West
Blog Archives

Andrus calls Risch an obstructionist on White Clouds

Former Democratic Idaho Gov. Cecil Andrus called Republican Sen. Jim Risch an “obstructionist” for stopping Republican Rep. Mike Simpson’s Boulder-White Clouds wilderness bill. The two men fought regularly when Risch was Idaho Senate Pro Tem and Andrus was governor in

Posted in Letters from the West

Idaho F&G Commission longs for delisting without griz in wilderness

The Idaho Fish and Game Commission issued a policy statement saying it wants grizzly bears delisted in Idaho. But the body that oversees management of all wildlife in the state said it does not support protecting grizzly bears in the

Posted in Letters from the West

Rancher who lambs on range instead of shed loses 31 sheep to wolves

Wolf depredations at former Democratic State Sen. John Peavey’s Flat Top Ranch is making news again in the Wood River Valley. The Mountain Express reported the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and USDA Wildlife Services confirmed that 18 lambs

Posted in Letters from the West

Johnson says Castle Peak history warrants monument

History alone is enough reason to make the Boulder-White Cloud Mountains a national monument, speakers at Redfish Lodge said Saturday. Cecil Andrus’ fight to stop a molybdenum mine at Castle Peak in 1970 got him elected governor and changed conservation

Posted in Letters from the West

Andrus 1989 speech marked the beginning of collaborative era in Idaho

Sometimes moments come together that mark the advances we’ve made in government, in attitudes and in our advancement as a state and a people. Often they take place in government, such as when Idaho Gov. Phil Batt signed legislation to

Posted in Letters from the West

Keen says Idaho Power will stick with coal for now

Idacorp CEO LaMont Keen told stockholders Thursday its subsidiary Idaho Power will continue to rely on coal plants in Wyoming and Nevada at least for now. Keen told the 10 stockholders who attended the annual meeting that it will revisit

Posted in Letters from the West

Sierra Club plans demonstration of Idacorp shareholders meeting

The Sierra Club will be demonstrating Thursday outside of the Idacorp, Inc. annual shareholders meet on the sidewalk in front of Idaho Power headquarters in Boise. The group urged marchers to be respectful of Idaho Power’s private property and people

Posted in Letters from the West

Otter declares victory on slickspot peppergrass but so does Tucci

The Obama administration has dropped its appeal of a federal judge’s decision to negate the listing of slickspot peppergrass as a threatened species. Chief U.S. Magistrate Candy Dale refused in December to reconsider her ruling the previous August that the

Posted in Letters from the West

BSU study says kestrels may not be as tolerant of us as we think

Biologists at Boise State University say birds thought to tolerate humans, like American kestrels, may not be so laid back around us. Erin H. Strasser and Julie A. Heath of Boise State University laid out their case in a study

Posted in Letters from the West

Biologists place transmitter on curlew to unlock life secrets

The long-billed curlew is the nation’s largest shorebird but its fate may lie in the grasslands of southern Idaho and the Great Basin. See more photos Video here Researchers from the Idaho Bird Observatory at Boise State University are trying

Posted in Letters from the West