Michael de Yoanna
@michaeldeyoanna.bsky.social
Managing Editor based a Mile High in Colorado. Editor of the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration of 14 NPR affiliates in ID, CO, WY, NM, UT, NV, MT, and AZ. The bureau is also home to "Our Living Lands," covering climate change on tribal lands.
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Hi! New to Blue Sky.
Follow me for urgent and interesting news from across the wild west.
I'm editor of the Mountain West News Bureau, a collab of NPR affiliates in ID, CO, WY, NM, UT, and NV. The bureau is also home to "Our Living Lands," covering climate change on tribal lands.
Follow me for urgent and interesting news from across the wild west.
I'm editor of the Mountain West News Bureau, a collab of NPR affiliates in ID, CO, WY, NM, UT, and NV. The bureau is also home to "Our Living Lands," covering climate change on tribal lands.
How the Pamunkey Indian Tribe is protecting its land from rising seas on the East Coast. From "Our Living Lands" and the Mountain West News Bureau - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
How the Pamunkey Indian Tribe is protecting its land from rising seas
Across the country, rising seas are threatening Indigenous lands. The Pamunkey are dealing with both sea level rise and stormwater flooding. Our Living Lands Producer Daniel Spaulding spoke with two r...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:12 PM
How the Pamunkey Indian Tribe is protecting its land from rising seas on the East Coast. From "Our Living Lands" and the Mountain West News Bureau - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Job Corps centers remain open, but their future is murky. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/education/20...
Job Corps centers remain open, but the future is murky
A second federal judge ruled the vocational program can keep going, for now.
www.wyomingpublicmedia.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Job Corps centers remain open, but their future is murky. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/education/20...
With the anticipation of additional days of hot temperatures, more than 100 health organizations are calling on state leaders to take more action on extreme heat. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/regional-new...
Mountain West health groups ask states to act on extreme heat
The organizations delivered a letter to the National Governors Association, which meets this week in Colorado Springs, Colo.
www.kunc.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:09 PM
With the anticipation of additional days of hot temperatures, more than 100 health organizations are calling on state leaders to take more action on extreme heat. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/regional-new...
Study: Prescribed burning substantially reduces wildfire severity, smoke emissions. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Study: Prescribed burning substantially reduces wildfire severity, smoke emissions
Prescribed burns are widely recognized as an effective wildfire mitigation tool. Now, using satellite imagery, land management records and fire emissions data, a team of researchers has put hard numbe...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Study: Prescribed burning substantially reduces wildfire severity, smoke emissions. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Report: Mountain West states need policies to meet energy, water demands of data centers. From Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
Report: Mountain West states need policies to meet energy, water demands of data centers
A new report shows the Mountain West needs to prepare for data centers, which are expected to demand massive amounts of energy and water. Experts say communities should adopt policies that prevent ene...
www.kunr.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:05 PM
Report: Mountain West states need policies to meet energy, water demands of data centers. From Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
How Montana is first in line in the Trump administration's plans to give states more control over national forests. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-reso...
The Trump administration is letting states have more control over national forests
Montana is home to the first agreement of its kind in the nation.
www.wyomingpublicmedia.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:04 PM
How Montana is first in line in the Trump administration's plans to give states more control over national forests. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-reso...
What's next in the feds plans to eliminate the Forest Service’s nine regional offices, including those in Missoula, Mont., Lakewood, Colo., Albuquerque, N.M. and Ogden, Utah? From the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/regional-new...
USDA proposes closing Forest Service offices while moving more workers to the Mountain West
The plan, released last week by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, would eliminate the Forest Service’s nine regional offices over the next year, including offices in Montana, Colorado, New Mexico ...
www.kunc.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:02 PM
What's next in the feds plans to eliminate the Forest Service’s nine regional offices, including those in Missoula, Mont., Lakewood, Colo., Albuquerque, N.M. and Ogden, Utah? From the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/regional-new...
How the Karuk Tribe is helping to reestablish cultural burning as "common practice," helping forest health. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social (w/ @boisestatepublicradio.org) - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
With reforms in place, California’s Karuk Tribe works to reestablish cultural burning as 'common practice'
For millennia, Indigenous peoples have intentionally set fires to care for the land. Colonization and fire exclusion largely put an end to those practices, though the tradition endured. Now, Californi...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
August 1, 2025 at 10:00 PM
How the Karuk Tribe is helping to reestablish cultural burning as "common practice," helping forest health. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social (w/ @boisestatepublicradio.org) - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Colorado and New Mexico fall short of funding to maintain bridges and roads, report finds. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
Two Mountain West states fall short of funding to maintain bridges and roads, report finds
A new report shows many states won’t have enough money to keep major roads and bridges in good repair over the next decade. Some states in the Mountain West are not immune to the problem, while others...
www.kunr.org
July 24, 2025 at 9:12 PM
Colorado and New Mexico fall short of funding to maintain bridges and roads, report finds. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
Bryan Kohberger, convicted of Idaho Four killings, will spend the rest of his life in prison. www.boisestatepublicradio.org/law-justice/...
Bryan Kohberger, convicted of Idaho Four killings, will spend the rest of his life in prison
Bryan Kohberger, the man who admitted to killing four University of Idaho students in 2022, has been sentenced to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole. Along with the life ter...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
July 23, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Bryan Kohberger, convicted of Idaho Four killings, will spend the rest of his life in prison. www.boisestatepublicradio.org/law-justice/...
Many southwestern communities are looking at importing specific kinds of trees in the battle against extreme heat. What they learn could be a model for other communities in our region. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Yvette Fernandez in Las Vegas - knpr.org/2025-07-18/c...
Communities are planting more trees to combat heat. But how do they work to cool the environment?
There's more going on in trees than what most of us may know. Experts explain the science of trees.
knpr.org
July 23, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Many southwestern communities are looking at importing specific kinds of trees in the battle against extreme heat. What they learn could be a model for other communities in our region. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Yvette Fernandez in Las Vegas - knpr.org/2025-07-18/c...
As wildfires rage, the feds raised the national preparedness level. If things get more intense, the military and other countries could be called upon. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social w/ @boisestatepublicradio.org - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/politics-gov...
We’re at Preparedness Level (PL) 4 this fire season. But what does that mean?
The National Preparedness Level – or PL – system is a 1 to 5 scale that indicates how busy a season is. When determining the PL, officials consider fuel and weather conditions, current fire activity a...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
July 23, 2025 at 7:34 PM
As wildfires rage, the feds raised the national preparedness level. If things get more intense, the military and other countries could be called upon. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social w/ @boisestatepublicradio.org - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/politics-gov...
The $1 billion in cuts to public broadcasting could hit small, rural newsrooms the hardest. From the Mountain West News Bureau - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/2025-07-21/1...
The $1 billion in cuts to public broadcasting could hit small, rural newsrooms the hardest
Public radio and television stations in rural areas may soon be contending with big cuts. President Trump is expected to sign a so-called “rescissions” measure from Congress that will take back $1.1 b...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
July 23, 2025 at 7:31 PM
The $1 billion in cuts to public broadcasting could hit small, rural newsrooms the hardest. From the Mountain West News Bureau - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/2025-07-21/1...
Silver tsunami brings new challenges for end-of-life care. From Mountain West News Bureau reporter Jenny Kinsey in New Mexico - www.kanw.org/new-mexico-n...
Silver Tsunami Brings New Challenges for End-of-Life Care
NPR Affiliate Public radio from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Your source for news and music.
www.kanw.org
July 18, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Silver tsunami brings new challenges for end-of-life care. From Mountain West News Bureau reporter Jenny Kinsey in New Mexico - www.kanw.org/new-mexico-n...
Many southwestern communities in the Mountain West are looking at importing specific kinds of trees in the battle against extreme heat. What they learn could be a model for other communities in our region. From our reporter at KNPR in Las Vegas, Yvette Fernandez. knpr.org/2025-07-18/c...
Communities are planting more trees to combat heat. But how do they work to cool the environment?
There's more going on in trees than what most of us may know. Experts explain the science of trees.
knpr.org
July 18, 2025 at 9:59 PM
Many southwestern communities in the Mountain West are looking at importing specific kinds of trees in the battle against extreme heat. What they learn could be a model for other communities in our region. From our reporter at KNPR in Las Vegas, Yvette Fernandez. knpr.org/2025-07-18/c...
Many National Weather Service offices in the Mountain West's flash flood zones are short-staffed. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
Many National Weather Service offices in the Mountain West's flash flood zones are short-staffed
In recent weeks, destructive and deadly flash floods have hit several parts of the country, including the Mountain West. A New York Times analysis found the National Weather Service has vacant senior ...
www.kunr.org
July 18, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Many National Weather Service offices in the Mountain West's flash flood zones are short-staffed. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
Before it died, opposition to public land sale proposal flooded politicians' inboxes. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/regional-new...
Opposition to public land sale proposal flooded politicians' inboxes
The bill would have required the Bureau of Land Management to sell up to 1.2 million acres within five miles of population centers in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, ...
www.kunc.org
July 18, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Before it died, opposition to public land sale proposal flooded politicians' inboxes. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/regional-new...
The U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to weigh in on the ongoing battle over corner crossing in several states. That’s the act of stepping over private land to access parcels of public land. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-reso...
Landowner escalates corner crossing case to the U.S. Supreme Court
The Wyoming property owner is arguing it's trespassing to step over private land to access public land.
www.wyomingpublicmedia.org
July 18, 2025 at 9:55 PM
The U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to weigh in on the ongoing battle over corner crossing in several states. That’s the act of stepping over private land to access parcels of public land. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-reso...
The Big Beautiful Bill codified a 25% increase in logging on federal lands. From the Mountain Wedst News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-reso...
The Big Beautiful Bill codified a 25% increase in logging on federal lands
But a lot of industry representatives aren’t happy with portions of the law.
www.wyomingpublicmedia.org
July 18, 2025 at 9:53 PM
The Big Beautiful Bill codified a 25% increase in logging on federal lands. From the Mountain Wedst News Bureau's Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/natural-reso...
Homeowners insurance is taking a big bite out of household incomes in our region. A new analysis shows it could be getting worse. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Homeowners insurance is taking a big bite out of household incomes in the Mountain West. And a new analysis shows it could be getting worse.
Nationwide, the percentage of household income spent on homeowners insurance premiums nearly doubled between the early 2000s and 2022 – jumping from 1.2% to 2.1%. That’s according to recent analysis b...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
July 18, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Homeowners insurance is taking a big bite out of household incomes in our region. A new analysis shows it could be getting worse. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ could drive up household energy costs in the Mountain West, experts predict. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ could drive up household energy costs in the Mountain West, experts predict
President Donald Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” phases out tax credits for clean energy projects, slowing the addition of new power to the grid. Experts predict it could drive up energy costs, ...
www.kunr.org
July 11, 2025 at 9:12 PM
‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ could drive up household energy costs in the Mountain West, experts predict. From the Mountain West News Bureau's Kaleb Roedel - www.kunr.org/local-storie...
Should we suppress wildfires ‘as swiftly as possible?’ With 2025 season well underway, scholars weigh in. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social w/ @boisestatepublicradio.org - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Should we suppress wildfires ‘as swiftly as possible?’ With 2025 season well underway, scholars weigh in
The Forest Service's new chief recently published a letter that called for wildfires to be suppressed "as swiftly as possible." That may sound prudent to many, but it raised eyebrows among some who st...
www.boisestatepublicradio.org
July 11, 2025 at 9:10 PM
Should we suppress wildfires ‘as swiftly as possible?’ With 2025 season well underway, scholars weigh in. From the Mountain West News Bureau's @murphywoodhouse.bsky.social w/ @boisestatepublicradio.org - www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/...
Nederland, Colo., population 1,500, has signed a letter of intent to purchase Eldora Mountain Resort from its current owner, Utah-based POWDR. Story from the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/2025-07-07/n...
Nederland announces 'bold' agreement to buy Eldora ski resort
Town leaders say the purchase will boost local economic development and will allow it to better support mountain ski employees.
www.kunc.org
July 9, 2025 at 8:36 PM
Nederland, Colo., population 1,500, has signed a letter of intent to purchase Eldora Mountain Resort from its current owner, Utah-based POWDR. Story from the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen - www.kunc.org/2025-07-07/n...
The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which provides compensation for people harmed by exposure to nuclear testing and mining, has been revived and expanded to cover additional states in the Mountain West region. From Yvette Fernandez: knpr.org/2025-07-09/r...
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act is renewed
The program expired last year as a cost cutting measure. It was renewed through 2028.
knpr.org
July 9, 2025 at 7:38 PM
The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which provides compensation for people harmed by exposure to nuclear testing and mining, has been revived and expanded to cover additional states in the Mountain West region. From Yvette Fernandez: knpr.org/2025-07-09/r...
The Mountain West is seeing the steepest fertility rate declines in the country. Housing prices are partly to blame. Story from Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/health/2025-...
The Mountain West is seeing the steepest fertility rate declines in the country
This could be because of rising home prices and, in some places, the decline of the mining industry.
www.wyomingpublicmedia.org
July 9, 2025 at 7:37 PM
The Mountain West is seeing the steepest fertility rate declines in the country. Housing prices are partly to blame. Story from Hanna Merzbach - www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/health/2025-...