Majority of Americans support more drilling, more conservation A new poll shows that a majority of Americans support more drilling even in protected areas (63 percent), while seven in 10 said they are trying to reduce their carbon footprint, mainly through using less electricity, driving less and recycling, ABC News reported. The poll, a combined effort of ABC News, Stanford University and Planet Green, found that 44 percent favored building more nuclear power plants -- not a majority, but still higher than the number has been in 28 years. Sixty-four percent of Americans rated "finding new energy sources" as more important than improving conservation. Support for alternative energy sources has been greater in past polls, while objections to offshore drilling and nuclear power have decreased, indicating the anxiety many feel about the deepening energy crisis....
Educators push 'No Child Left Inside' funding Canoeing trips on the Chesapeake Bay. Endangered butterfly camps for teachers in Rhode Island. A new corral and barn for a nature center in Texas that wants to show kids live bison. Outdoor and environmental educators across the nation are ramping up pressure on Congress and their state lawmakers to add funding for nature learning. The effort dubbed "No Child Left Inside" could mean millions more for environmental education—and a major windfall for nonprofits hoping for more federal help getting kids outside. The resolution, which awaits a vote in the House, would send money to nonprofits and state departments of education for outdoor education aimed at kids who now spend more time in front of computer screens, video games and televisions than playing outside. Environmental activism groups say nature learning is crucial amid alarming rates of childhood obesity and a growing concern about the health of the outdoors....
Congressmen probe review of decision that Santa Cruz is navigable Two congressional committee chairmen are investigating why a decision was suspended that would have assured regulation of development and pollution along the Santa Cruz River and its tributaries. In early July, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pulled back on an earlier determination that 54 miles of the Santa Cruz is a navigable river, saying it will review that decision for at least 60 days. Late this week, U.S. Reps. Henry Waxman of California and James Oberstar of Minnesota, both Democrats, blasted the Corps' action. In a letter to the agency, they said the Bush administration must explain the Santa Cruz decision in detail and provide unedited copies of all letters and other communications to and from federal agencies that are related to the decision. As the federal government interprets the Clean Water Act, wetlands, streams and washes are protected if they have significant connection to a navigable stream. A developer or a government agency wishing to build homes or roads near such a tributary or wanting to discharge into it needs a federal permit. That takes time and money and often leads to conservation requirements. A navigability determination could hurt the proposed Rosemont Mine southeast of Tucson, by regulating discharges of mine waste into Santa Cruz tributaries. Nationally, such decisions would have "dramatic and lasting implications" regarding federal and state authority to protect rivers against toxic chemical discharges, the congressmen's letter said....
Landowners aim to reclaim losses in easement scandal Hundreds of landowners caught up in the state's conservation easement scandal are joining forces in hopes of reclaiming thousands of dollars lost on transactions now deemed invalid. "It's one of the worse messes I've been in, and it's not getting any better," said J.D. Wright, a rancher in Ordway who placed his lands under easement. At issue is an innovative state program in which landowners who agree to permanently protect their properties from development can claim lucrative state income tax credits. The credits - worth as much as $350,000 each - can be sold for cash. But in the eight years since the program took effect, dozens of instances of suspected fraud and abuse have been uncovered. Now, the Colorado Department of Revenue is seeking at least $19 million in repayment, and that number is expected to grow. Attorney General John Suthers has convened a grand jury to investigate questionable transactions....
Bomber training runs has ranchers, farmers upset Cattle ranchers and farmers are unhappy with a U.S. Air Force proposal to significantly expand training airspace for bomber pilots. The Air Force wants to triple the size of the Powder River Training Complex, allowing B-52 and B-1 bombers from a nearby air base in South Dakota to train in rural parts of North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming, including Campbell County. Opponents argue this would lower the property value of land directly below the proposed training area. Among the concerns: - During training exercises, jets will drop flares and aluminum confetti to throw off heat-seeking missiles, potentially igniting brush fires on ranches and farms below. - The low-flying bombers will frighten cattle. A study showed that during similar flight exercises in Nevada, breeding among cows plunged to less than 50 percent because of the stress caused by these training missions, according to a news release from the United Stockgrowers of America. - If ranchers decide to sell their property, they have to disclose that the land is in a military fly zone, potentially cheapening the resale value of their land....
Ban on selling horses for slaughter has support in Congress Animal welfare advocates say they expect Congress to take the next step in curtailing horse slaughter by passing measures that would stop the shipment of animals to be slaughtered. If passed, a House bill would outlaw the transport and sale of any horse across state lines or international borders to be slaughtered for human consumption. Those who break the law would be fined and could serve jail time. Most Texas representatives oppose the measure. Chris Heyde, deputy director of government and legal affairs for the Animal Welfare Institute, said he expects both the House and Senate to vote on the measure in September. A horse slaughter ban has been an issue affecting North Texas, where two slaughterhouse plants – Dallas Crown in Kaufman and Beltex in Fort Worth – were shut down. An effort to write a ban into law failed, but the plants were shuttered after federal inspections were cut off. It remains legal to sell and ship horses to slaughterhouses in Canada and Mexico knowing that they may be slaughtered for human consumption....
Riders on historic trail share love of history, horses Todd is a long-haul trucker from Harrisburg who is spending 17 days driving a team of four Belgian horses harnessed to a buckboard wagon across western South Dakota because it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Men like John Wesley Todd routinely drove the same route out of Fort Pierre with freight wagons loaded with provisions that kept a growing invasion of gold miners and others supplied with the goods they needed to settle the Black Hills. "My great-grandfather was a freight wagon driver with a six-hitch mule team on the old Deadwood trail, which is why I wanted to do it, too," Todd said. "I've enjoyed the heck out of it." A love of history and horses is what brought 300 people to spend $200 on a trail badge that gave them the right to ride a little-seen historic trail crossing 51 private ranches, numerous gravel roads and a little public land that will end on Aug. 15 in a triumphant parade down Deadwood's Main Street....
It's All Trew: Stetson led way for modern cowboy hats The unique history of the felt hat goes back to the mid-15th century, more than 400 years ago, during which time it has been both a symbol of status and social necessity. The mysterious quality of beaver hair with its tiny barbed hooks allows it to be gathered and processed into a feltlike material, then shaped into a form to fit man's head, thus becoming protective in use and stylish in looks. For untold centuries every civilized man desired his own beaver hat no matter the cost. The demand for beaver fur helped shape the history of North America. The proceeds from trapped beaver fur financed ocean voyages, expeditions up mountains, across rivers, deserts, founded settlements, built forts and established the trails that opened up the new continent. The fortunes created by fur provided a colorful a period of history like no other in the world. It all ended when the fashionable man decided he preferred a silk hat to the old beaver felt style. Other competition to the felt hat came from the Spanish explorers moving north from Mexico. Their hot climate, desert sun and need for shade gave birth to the huge sombreros made by weaving materials from straw and forming them into a hat shape similar to the old standard felt hat....
IT'S THE PITTS: A body part for a paycheck When I shook his hand I knew right away that something was missing. The reason I didn't have a good grasp on the situation was that what was missing was the rancher's thumb and opposing appendage. Ah, ha, I thought, a team roper! If you think it's easy, just try shaking hands with one some day. There's nothing to grab on to. After we said our howdy-dos with One-Thumb Frank, the five of us settled into a leisurely night in a hotel lounge. We were all in town for a big cow sale the next day, the order buyer, ring man, auctioneer, the rancher and me. I was traveling buddies with the rest of the crew but it was the first time I'd ever met One-Thumb. He turned out to be a wonderful man, tough as a boot and colorful as a Navajo blanket....