Talk to you in a month. Five years ago, breaching dams was considered so radical that few environmentalists would touch it. Today, High Country News reports that on the Snake River, dam breaching is center stage in a debate more fierce and complex than that over the spotted owl. Communities and industries that rely on dams are being forced to imagine the day when the Snake will once again flow as a natural river. 1999 brings good news for greens.
Counties use a debate over school funding to grab control of national forests.
Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt has been on the road, and wherever he goes, he sees federal land that needs a lot more protection. Either you protect them through planning and legislation, or President Clinton will, by creating a National Monument. In this edition of Radio High Country News, Washington D.C. correspondent Jon Margolis describes how Babbitt's maneuvers are playing out in the national arena. A member of the Steen's Mountain Advisory Council in Oregon talks about the progress her group has made since Babbitt came to town. And a report from Grand Junction, where Babbitt recently made an appearance.