Mountain West News Bureau

A multi-state project is working to provide electric vehicle charging stations and corridors to scenic areas around the Mountain West. ChargeWest is working with state agencies in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona to make this a reality.

Yellowstone National Park’s northern loop reopens on Saturday, July 2. The park initially said it may not open at all this season due to major destruction to roads and bridges from a historic flood. The park is also dropping its alternating license plate entry system that it put in mid-June. This means that 93 percent of the park will be open to the public.

Public swimming pools across the Mountain West are facing lifeguard shortages. To address the problem, some agencies are offering hiring incentives.

A panel of fire science experts convened at the Desert Research Institute (DRI) in Reno to discuss the extent of the devastation caused by climate-driven wildfires and their predictions for the 2022 fire season.

The U.S. Army's 25th Infantry Regiment, comprised of approximately 20-25 African American, or Buffalo Soldiers, crossed northeast Wyoming in June and July 1897 on their way from Fort Missoula, Mont. to St. Louis, Mo. The nearly six week journey proved very challenging at times, including severe bouts of illness from contaminated drinking water and going days without reliable meals.

The U.S. Supreme Court has handed abortion decisions to states. That means state supreme courts will likely have to review what abortion rights people have under state constitutions. In the Mountain West, there are already several lawsuits about abortion laws that these state courts have to review. That includes one suit in Idaho and another in Utah, which has led to a temporary stay of that law going into effect.

As part of Wyoming Public Media’s ‘I respectfully disagree’ series, four panelists discussed issues surrounding wild horses in the state on a Facebook live. Stakeholders spoke for an hour about topics like herd management, fertility control and holding facilities.

Throughout the Mountain West, Colorado and Arizona already have paid sick leave and Nevada has a broader paid leave law.

As wildfire season picks up, some communities in the Mountain West are trying to reduce fire risks. That includes finding new ways to celebrate America’s independence.

From the early 1800s til 1969 the federal government forced Indigenous children into boarding schools to assimilate them into white culture. Department of the Interior officials and tribal leaders testified in Congress Wednesday about an ongoing investigation into the over 400 federal schools.