Conservation News

On July 31, the Bureau of Reclamation released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the future management of the Colorado River through Lake Powell and Lake Mead. This 10-year plan will replace the 2007 operating guidelines currently in effect. This marks the first instance of the...

Montana officials are warning residents and visitors of unusually high bear activity, resulting from two key factors: drought conditions and a failed berry flush. According to a recent Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) press release, bear specialists across the state have been receiving reports...

We’re very excited to announce the most recent installment of MeatEater’s American History. In this new audiobook original listeners will plunge into the frozen vastness of the Last Frontier, where a diehard breed of hunters and trappers carved out a living from the Alaskan wilderness in the early...

This is the first of two articles on the haunting disappearance of two Wisconsin hunting/fishing buddies who vanished in February 1961. Ronald Wick, 19, and Carl Stolz, 21, vanished for over 45 years after they went joyriding across a frozen Wisconsin lake around 3 a.m. on Feb. 21, 1961. The...

A shocking attempt to outlaw all forms of hunting, fishing, and trapping, as well as animal husbandry, breeding practices, rodeos, and more, in Oregon has failed. IP28, or the People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions (PEACE) Act, was a proposed ballot measure put forward by animal...

On July 24, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) opened up a two-week-long public comment period as a request for information on the implementation of drain tile setbacks. Before I lose you with that very exciting opener, know that this is a crucial time for hunters and conservationists to...

In less than two weeks the Department of the Interior (DOI) made three significant changes to the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The first alters the definition of harm. A week later, the second and third changes were announced, which removes blanket protections from threatened species and determines...

Earlier this week, the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission made two votes that will seriously impact fur trapping in the state. The actions are at the center of ongoing, contentious debates between consumptive users and animal rights activists. Unscientific Bag Limits On July 16, the commission...

The 2001 Roadless Area Rule is under fire on multiple fronts. As Meateater has reported, Congress is considering a bill that would repeal the rule. At the same time, Mike Lee tacked on an amendment to repeal the rule to legislation pertaining to wildfire prevention. And in 2025, U.S. Secretary of...

On July 14, the Department of the Interior (DOI) announced a revised proposal to increase management flexibility for grizzly bears in areas where the species has met or exceeded federal recovery benchmarks. “The science is more than clear: grizzly bears have recovered and far exceeded every federal...

On Monday, July 13, President Donald Trump signed two executive orders with outsized impacts to federally-owned public lands in Utah. He shrank the size of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments by about 90% each. The move is yet another action in a year-long back-and-forth over...

On June 24, an Oregon-based environmental group filed a lawsuit that could have broader ramifications for public land conservation across the country. Cascadia Wildlands, which bills itself as “defending Cascadia’s wild ecosystems in the forest, in the courts, and in the streets,” is challenging a...