Author – The Durango Herald

Gas, oil industry should be treated like any other

There is a raging debate in Colorado, and nationally, about fracking. Part of the debate is semantic, centered around different ways in which the term fracking is used. ...

DATE: Jan 29, 2014 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Wilderness Act turns 50 – it’s time to celebrate

You don’t miss your water till the well runs dry. It is easy to take things for granted, even really important things: our family, our jobs, the beautiful area in which we live,...

DATE: Jan 15, 2014 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

A harsh, costly legacy left by dirty energy

When most people think of reasons to oppose nuclear energy, they think of the risk of catastrophic failure at the power plant and the lack of any long-term solution for the spent, highly rad...

DATE: Dec 18, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Solar gardens can make local power a reality

La Plata Electric Association is taking applications from those interested in developing up to 2 megawatts of local community solar gardens. It is a great step forward. A communit...

DATE: Dec 4, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Land plans: The good, bad and unfinished

The new management plans for the public lands of Southwest Colorado are finally complete. There are two plans, one covers the Tres Rios Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management, the oth...

DATE: Nov 20, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Sorry affair with the Navajo Mine leaves public out

In 1957, the Utah Construction Co. leased lands on the Navajo Nation to mine coal, and the Navajo Mine was begun. The mine always has been, and continues to be, the only coal sup...

DATE: Oct 23, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

BLM owes public greater clarity on drilling rules

The long-awaited new Resource Management Plan for the Tres Rios Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management, which covers the lands of Southwest Colorado, finally has been released. ...

DATE: Oct 9, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Stewardship of our forests requires balance

Seeing the forest for the trees can be a frustrating experience, even if you’re a forester with decades of experience stewarding our public forests. Appropriate stewardship of a...

DATE: Sep 25, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Time to protect integrity of area around Chaco

Last week, the Society for American Archaeology, New Mexico Archaeological Council, Chaco Alliance, WildEarth Guardians and San Juan Citizens Alliance petitioned the Bureau of Land Managemen...

DATE: Sep 11, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

When it comes to mines, bonding is important issue

The recent series in The Durango Herald about mining issues and water quality in the upper Animas River basin highlight an all too common problem: The question of how to handle the legacy of...

DATE: Aug 13, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

BLM trading the irreplaceable for the fleeting

Some trade-offs are hard. Whether to go with a high-deductible health insurance plan and risk the $5,000 to $10,000 charges should you get hurt or go with higher monthly payments and have le...

DATE: Jul 31, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green

Commissioners right to press for leasing plan

In its June 28 editorial, The Durango Herald argued that La Plata County commissioners overstepped when they sent a letter to the Bureau of Land Management requesting a deferral of the gas a...

DATE: Jul 2, 2013 | CATEGORY: Thinking Green