Southwest (AZ NM OK TX)

"Experts Predict Bad Year For New Mexico Wildfires"

"Wildfire experts in Northern New Mexico are urging the community to prepare for a hot, dry summer with potentially worse conditions than previous years, and they say the idea of a wildfire “season” is slowly dissipating as climate change makes the state’s forests more susceptible to blazes year-round."

Source: Santa Fe New Mexican, 03/30/2021

Plan To Expand Texas Highway Stalled Over Environmental Racism Concerns

"Texas is crisscrossed by thousands of miles of freeways, but a Houston-area county is suing the state to stop one of them being expanded, arguing the air pollution and displacement will primarily harm minority communities."

Source: Guardian, 03/24/2021

Quagga Mussels — Worse Than Zebra Mussels and Maybe Headed Your Way

An invasive species of mussel — no, not zebra mussels, but quagga mussels — are wreaking havoc not just in the Great Lakes, but have now spread through the Mississippi and Colorado basins, as far west as Lake Mead. The latest TipSheet runs down the extent of the problem, how quaggas may be even worse than zebra mussels, and ideas for reporting on your local waterways.

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March 25, 2021

Building Climate Reporting Confidence: The South

Covering Climate Now, Climate Matters in the Newsroom and Southerly present experienced journalists, 2:30-4:00pm ET, sharing how they got up to speed on the climate issue, challenges they've faced in reporting and ideas on how to tell localized, human-centered stories to engage audiences. Includes Q&A.

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Last Texas Utility Commissioner Resigns After Leaked Call Pledging Profits

"The last standing member of Texas’s Public Utility Commission handed in his resignation on Tuesday following a report that he assured out-of-state investors who made big profits from last month’s blackouts that he was working to make sure they could keep their money."

Source: Earther, 03/18/2021

"Saving The West’s Most Iconic Cactus From Climate Change"

"A warming world means an invasive grass is threatening the famous saguaro
Cactuses cover a hillside in Saguaro National Park in Arizona."

"TUCSON — The giant saguaro, an icon of the American West, is beloved in this state. Arms raised in a perpetual “hello there,” the saguaro covers the desert wilderness and thrives in cities. Its silhouette appears in fine art and on restaurant walls; businesses and schools carry its name. Arizona state law protects the plant, and it is revered by the native Tohono O’odham tribe.

Source: Washington Post, 03/11/2021

Oil’s Fight to Roll Back Tribal Sovereignty After Supreme Court Decision

"Gov. Kevin Stitt’s commission to sort out Oklahoma’s future is stacked with oil and gas insiders — and has no Indigenous voices."

Source: The Intercept, 03/11/2021

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