Kirk Siegler appears in the following:
After a rough year, new wildfire warnings have Boulder, Colo., on edge
Thursday, April 14, 2022
Boulder is again under a red flag warning for extreme wildfire danger as powerful winds like those that fanned a destructive blaze in December return to the drought stricken region.
Republicans face a test of extremists' power in Idaho's primaries
Friday, April 08, 2022
Moderate Republicans are organizing in opposition to extremists gaining control of the party.
What do midterm races in Idaho tell us about the Republican party?
Thursday, April 07, 2022
One of the most intense battlegrounds between Republican moderates and extremists is in Idaho, where next month's primary is seen as a national test for how far to the right the GOP can be pulled.
Will skiing survive? Resorts struggle through a winter of climate and housing woes
Thursday, March 31, 2022
In the West, ski resorts are banking on a Spring Break surge after a rough winter of prolonged drought, labor and housing shortages and frustrated customers.
Northwest music fest offers indie artists a platform after long pandemic break
Sunday, March 27, 2022
One of the Northwest's biggest indie rock festivals is back this weekend after pandemic delays. Treefort Music Fest in Boise, Idaho, draws big stars but also small town artists looking for a break.
Raw materials needed for energy have been found on Native Americans' sacred land
Thursday, March 17, 2022
Rising gas prices and the war in Ukraine supercharged demand for mining to support electrifying the country's transportation grid, but some of it lies on land considered sacred to Native Americans.
Arizona Republicans continue pushing voting restrictions, risking backfire
Friday, March 04, 2022
Republican lawmakers in Arizona are introducing nearly a hundred so-called voter reform bills this year despite two reviews showing there were no problems with the 2020 presidential election.
Native Americans protest proposed copper mine in Arizona
Friday, February 18, 2022
In Arizona, members of the San Carlos Tribe and other activists from around the Southwest are beginning a 40-mile run and protest to the site of a proposed copper mine on land they consider sacred.
A White House push to help Wyoming town go nuclear is cautiously embraced
Wednesday, February 02, 2022
One struggling Wyoming coal town is betting its future on nuclear power with the help of an unlikely partner, billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates.
Researchers launch Bering Strait expedition, seeking 'black box' to salmon survival
Monday, January 31, 2022
Salmon are on the brink of extinction in the Pacific Northwest, where scientists are set to launch an international expedition into the remote ocean which could hold clues to the fish's survival.
Labor issues put a squeeze on America's $50 billion ski industry
Tuesday, January 25, 2022
Ski industry conglomerate Vail Resorts is pushing back against criticism over staff pay and other operational struggles due to labor issues made worse by the omicron surge.
Short term rentals are an opportunity for some, but are impacting affordable housing
Thursday, January 13, 2022
Short term rentals are making affordable housing even scarcer in booming western towns. But they're also creating economic opportunity for people trying to make ends meet.
Why some cities are operating legal homeless camps even in the dead of winter
Friday, January 07, 2022
Facing worsening homelessness and sprawling illegal encampments, some American cities are resorting to setting up regulated, outdoor shelters even in the dead of winter.
Rural hospitals received pandemic aid. What happens when the funds run out?
Thursday, December 30, 2021
Rural health leaders warn that more hospital closures loom as federal pandemic relief money dries up. At the same time, there are concerns of a surge in hospitalizations due to the omicron variant.
President Biden faces pressure to end fossil fuel development to fight climate change
Thursday, December 23, 2021
President Biden faces pressure to end fossil fuel development on federal land to fight climate change. But industry expects new drilling opportunities, putting his public lands chief in a tight spot.
Why Biden's new public lands chief has to 'walk a line' on climate policy
Friday, December 17, 2021
President Biden is under pressure to end all fossil fuel development on federal land in order to fight the climate crisis, yet the influential industry still expects new drilling opportunities.
Thriving Black-owned businesses 'righting the wrongs of the past' in rural Mississippi
Friday, December 03, 2021
In one of the poorest rural regions of the country's poorest state, a Black entrepreneur is helping Black owned businesses open and thrive even during the pandemic.
This Colorado 'solar garden' is literally a farm under solar panels
Sunday, November 14, 2021
The newly passed infrastructure bill could lead to a boom in solar production requiring a lot more land, including farmland. But research is showing solar panels might actually help grow some crops.
The trauma of smaller shootings lasts in local communities for months
Friday, November 05, 2021
Seven people were shot and three died in a recent shooting at a mall in Boise, Idaho. Killings with few deaths aren't considered mass shootings by FBI standards, but still traumatize communities.
Vaccinated seniors navigate life in mostly unvaccinated rural America
Friday, October 29, 2021
Vaccination rates in much of rural America remain low. But there's one consistent holdout demographic: seniors, many of whom remember lining up eagerly as children to get the polio vaccine.