As water regulations shift – again – advocates, officials work to cope
As regulators and advocates grapple with the fallout of a Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the Clean Water Act, water lawyer Rhett Larson offers a calming bit of advice: Be like Bruce Lee.
Lawmakers spar over BLM plan to weigh conservation in land-use decisions
A Bureau of Land Management rule that would, for the first time, count conservation as a legitimate use for public lands, along with mining, logging and other uses, is an “offensive” overreach of federal authority, Republicans said Thursday.
Ranchers hail, environmentalists fear Supreme Court clean water ruling
Ranchers and Republican lawmakers are welcoming a Supreme Court ruling that narrows the range of waters subject to federal regulation, calling it a win for private property rights that reins in overeager regulators.
House panel approves new financial hurdle for some solar, wind projects
A House panel voted Friday to erect a new financial hurdle in the path of some future solar and wind projects in Arizona.
New law gives more money for water projects
Gov. Doug Ducey on April 21 signed a bill that provides larger grants for developing water projects in rural areas, but questions linger on whether there will be any money for them.
EPA tells Arizona: Not a drop is yours!
Once again the bright lights are shown on the caricature of the federal government regulating everything from cradle to grave – only this time it is from stock pond to ditch.
House passes livestock cruelty bill without “ag-gag” provision
The removal of a controversial provision didn’t go far enough to bring critics of a livestock cruelty bill on board, but the House of Representatives still narrowly passed the legislation.
Speaker Tobin not giving up on water authority bill
A proposal that would allow the creation of new agencies to secure new regional water supplies is stalled in the Arizona House, but Speaker Andy Tobin says he's not convinced opposition from Yuma farmers means the bill won't move this year.
Lawsuit settlement tosses rule on removing wolves for livestock kills
Mexican gray wolves no longer will be subject to the "three strikes and you're out" rule, thanks to a settlement reached between environmental groups and the federal government. The informal rule went by the bureaucratic sounding name of standard operating procedure 13 (SOP 13), which allowed wolves to be removed from the wild for attacking and killing livestock three times within a year.