Nature and the Environment

Top five Colorado-animals-behaving-badly stories

Yes, animals are adorable. But they can also be destructive, as witnessed by the havoc wreaked by a certain squirrel this week -- more on that below. The chaos-loving rodent inspired us to round up five recent stories about critters gone wild, in a manner of speaking. Count down our favorites below ... More >>

Fracking the North Fork Valley: Opponents exult as BLM defers drilling

Yesterday the U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced that it would remove 22 proposed oil and gas parcels in the scenic North Fork Valley from a summer lease sale, opting instead to "conduct additional analysis...based on public input." And the public that's been deluging the BLM with input -- obj ... More >>

Air quality: The EPA tentatively approves Colorado's plan to reduce brown cloud

Some things about Colorado just don't change. But while the state has been the country's leanest, meanest anti-obesity machinefor years, it's struggled with, lived under and remain concerned about the brown cloud even longer. But this morning, Governor John Hickenlooper shared news that the State Im ... More >>

What the Frack?!: Grassroots group pushes for fracking moratorium in Arapahoe County

The first time Sonia Skakich-Scrima learned about fracking, she was reading the Denver Business Journal almost a year ago to date. What she read alarmed her, but what she Googled afterward tripled that. "I tried to understand why we didn't care about the environment or the aftermath," she says. "I ... More >>

Fracking is booming, but a friendlier name couldn't hurt. Drill, baby, drill!

The word of the year? Our money (and yours) is on "fracking," the shortened term for "hydraulic fracturing," a practice that shook neighborhoods (in some cases literally) around the country this year, and has fueled the oil and gas boom in northeastern Colorado. But if energy execs really want to dr ... More >>

What's good for the (Canada) goose isn't really good for Denver

An adult goose releases approximately one pound of poop every single day. This fact stays relatively unnoticed until wintertime, when thousands of Canada geese -- seemingly overnight -- come out of the woodwork and waddle onto your property and into your parking spot. Why are there so many? The trut ... More >>

Encana blasts EPA report linking fracking to Wyoming water pollution

Encana WY drill rig. ​In a telephone conference with journalists this morning, officials of the Canadian energy giant Encana sharply disputed an EPA draft report that linked the company's gas drilling operations in Wyoming to contamination of residents' drinking water, calling the report badly ... More >>

Fracking the North Fork: Paonia residents rally against drilling assault

​Thanks to the increasing push for more oil and gas drilling, communities once considered out of the fray are being drawn into the controversies over hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" -- even folks in the stunning North Fork Valley, an area better known for its organic farms, ranches operate ... More >>

Feather Your Nest

​Thanks to the increasing push for more oil and gas drilling, communities once considered out of the fray are being drawn into the controversies over hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" -- even folks in the stunning North Fork Valley, an area better known for its organic farms, ranches operate ... More >>

Fracking lovefest blooms from John Hickenlooper's gas play

​Yesterday, amid an unusually genial gathering of environmental and energy leaders, Governor John Hickenlooper unveiled new state rules requiring detailed disclosure of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing (or "fracking") methods of drilling for oil and gas -- a major step toward transpa ... More >>

Fracking: Polluted water in Wyoming could spell trouble in Colorado

Colorado oil pads.​The release of an EPA report detailing suspected groundwater contamination from gas drilling operations in Wyoming comes just as Colorado is weighing tougher restrictions and wider disclosures about the hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" process -- and may serve as Exhibit A ... More >>

Fracking: Gas industry pours $747 million into lobbying and Congress

Colorado well pads. ​As the oil and gas industry has turned increasingly to hydraulic fracturing to extract reserves, fears about groundwater contamination from the toxic chemicals used in "fracking" have intensified. And that's prompted a $747 million spending spree by major industry players ... More >>

Reader: Shooting of a mother bear in Crestone was unjustified & state must be accountable

​Our story about the killing of a mother bear in Crestone by a Colorado Parks and Wildlife officer, and the current status of the two cubs she left behind, drew a response from the woman who owns the ranch where the shooting took place. Here's what she has to say.

Meet Bodhi, the Denver Zoo's first male elephant: Bring on the green weenie!

Bodhi.​The green weenie is here. The Denver Zoo has welcomed its first male elephant, a seven-year-old named Bodhi who hails from Ohio. Thanks to a new exhibit called Asian Tropics, the zoo will soon have space for up to eight male elephants -- a serious undertaking for a very moist reason.

LoDo goes ape as Gorilla Run raises money for Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund

Eric Gruneisen​Last weekend, zombies filled downtown. This weekend, it was gorillas -- 1,200 of them, all participating in the eighth annual 5K Gorilla Run, which benefits the Denver-based Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund. That's more runners than there are mountain gorillas left in the wild ... More >>

Denver has struggled with ozone levels for thirty years, and the fight isn't over yet

Eric Gruneisen​Last weekend, zombies filled downtown. This weekend, it was gorillas -- 1,200 of them, all participating in the eighth annual 5K Gorilla Run, which benefits the Denver-based Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund. That's more runners than there are mountain gorillas left in the wild ... More >>

How to get my job: Reptile Caretaker

​It takes a certain type of person to step into an alligator pen or to play with a giant snake, but Jay Young of Colorado Gators Reptile Park in Mosca does just that, every single day. We caught up with him to see if our fantasies of living in reptile utopia -- riding giant tortoises and wrest ... More >>

Beaver Fever! Sherri Tippe gives a dam about Colorado's beaver population

Video: Sherri Tippie leads a beaver-trapping mission

Get Buzzed at Cross Pollination

Video: Sherri Tippie leads a beaver-trapping mission

Fracking contamination "inconceivable," says John Hickenlooper -- but EPA disagrees

​Governor John Hickenlooper has walked a taut tightrope on energy issues since taking office, pushing for more natural gas drilling in a state already leading the region in drilling starts, while at the same time nudging the industry toward greater disclosure of the chemicals used in hydraulic ... More >>

Denver Zoo staff to travel to Vietnam to help Asian elephants, Michael Jackson monkeys

MJ? Is that you?​ This month, four Denver Zoo staff members will travel to Vietnam to help two endangered species: Asian elephants -- up to twelve of which will one day live in the zoo's new Asian Tropics exhibit -- and Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys, an extraordinarily endangered species of monkey ... More >>

Creature Comfort

MJ? Is that you?​ This month, four Denver Zoo staff members will travel to Vietnam to help two endangered species: Asian elephants -- up to twelve of which will one day live in the zoo's new Asian Tropics exhibit -- and Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys, an extraordinarily endangered species of monkey ... More >>

Fracking Aurora is a natural gas: Kenny Be's Worst-Case Scenario

​ On Thursday, June 23, 2011, the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission will explain how hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operations on the former Lowry Bombing Range comply with Arapahoe County's 2007 Sustainable Growth Objectives. It will be an easy sell...

Wanted: homing-pigeon trainer for MCA Denver

​ On Thursday, June 23, 2011, the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission will explain how hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operations on the former Lowry Bombing Range comply with Arapahoe County's 2007 Sustainable Growth Objectives. It will be an easy sell...

Dress for Success

​ On Thursday, June 23, 2011, the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission will explain how hydraulic fracturing (fracking) operations on the former Lowry Bombing Range comply with Arapahoe County's 2007 Sustainable Growth Objectives. It will be an easy sell...

Denver Zoo buries time capsule in Asian Tropics, new elephant and tapir exhibit

​ When it's finished in the spring of 2012, Asian Tropics, the Denver Zoo's ambitious new exhibit, will be home to elephants, rhinos, leopards, flying foxes, fishing cats, otters, gibbons, tapirs and... a time capsule made by middle-schoolers.

So many alpacas! SO MANY ALPACAS!

The alpaca contemplates.​The middle east may have its camels, which are admittedly pretty awesome, but here in the Americas we have llamas. And also alpacas, which are kind of like mini-llamas. Unlike llamas, though, alpacas are not for carrying things; specifically, they are bred for their ha ... More >>

Jared Polis and Diana DeGette try to tighten regulations on fracking -- again

"Gasland"​Representatives Diane DeGette and Jared Polis are taking another run at tightening federal regulations on hydraulic fracturing, a natural gas drilling technique also known as fracking. Introduced this week by the Colorado twosome and fellow Democratic rep Maurice Hinchey from New Yor ... More >>

Oil companies love horizontal drilling in Weld County: Simpsons' Mr. Burns would approve

​Weld County is undergoing an explosion in the number of oil and gas companies using a technique called "horizontal drilling" to get at deposits deep in the Denver Basin, according to the Greeley Tribune. Which puts us in mind of a certain Simpsons episode.

Gas-drilling oversight bill killed by the House: What's the fracking point?

Gas well pads.​A bill that sought to increase the reporting process for water-quality complaints related to oil and gas drilling in Colorado died quietly at the statehouse yesterday, with Republican lawmakers insisting that the industry's use of hydraulic fracturing fluids, or "fracking," pose ... More >>

Beaver Lady Sherri Tippie explains how to give a dam, save a river

Sherri Tippie.​Twenty-five years ago, hairdresser Sherri Tippie persuaded Aurora officials to let her trap beaver that were gnawing trees on a golf course and relocate rather than kill them. Since that first trapping session, ecologists and water authorities have increasingly come to see bea ... More >>

Wolverines in Colorado: Should we welcome the beasts back?

​There's currently one known wolverine in the state of Colorado, but there soon could be a lot more. Eighteen months ago, one of the giant weasels wandered into our state, where wolverines have long been absent. He was implanted with a tracking device and given a name: M56 (awww...). Today, h ... More >>

Denver Zoo's new animal babies: Four itty-bitty Komodo dragons with teeth that could kill you

Dave Parsons/Denver Zoo​ Here's to you, Hagrid. The Denver Zoo is hatching dragons! In the past week, four Komodo dragons have hatched at the zoo. And the keepers are expecting even more: Four eggs remain in the incubator. Even though Komodo dragons are lizards, and lizards aren't that cute, ... More >>

Eugenia Bone stirs up a talk on the Kitchen Ecosystem tonight

Audrey Hall​Food writer Eugenia Bone will be at the Denver Botanic Gardens tonight, discussing "The Kitchen Ecosystem" as part of the Bonfils-Stanton Lecture Series. We recently caught up with Bone and asked her what it means to call your kitchen an "ecosystem."

Bugging Out

Audrey Hall​Food writer Eugenia Bone will be at the Denver Botanic Gardens tonight, discussing "The Kitchen Ecosystem" as part of the Bonfils-Stanton Lecture Series. We recently caught up with Bone and asked her what it means to call your kitchen an "ecosystem."

For the Birds

Audrey Hall​Food writer Eugenia Bone will be at the Denver Botanic Gardens tonight, discussing "The Kitchen Ecosystem" as part of the Bonfils-Stanton Lecture Series. We recently caught up with Bone and asked her what it means to call your kitchen an "ecosystem."

Ken Salazar sued by conservation group crying fowl over the Sprague's Pipit

WildEarth Guardians says this little guy deserves to be listed as an endangered species.​A prominent wildlife conservation group is suing Secretary of the Interior (and former Colorado Senator) Ken Salazar for reportedly failing to protect a prairie song bird that many say is nearing extinctio ... More >>

RechargeColorado.com just about out of basic appliance rebates -- but can we interest you in a furnace?

Shut the damn doors and you'll save even more energy.​If you were hoping to get a rebate for buying an energy efficient washing machine, dishwasher or refrigerator, you're probably too late. RechargeColorado.com, the state website that serves as the starting point for the federally funded reb ... More >>

Ken Salazar's gotta be happy: The black-tailed prairie dog isn't endangered after all

Stop resting easy, pal. You're not endangered anymore.​Last December, when President Barack Obama first announced the nomination of Colorado Senator Ken Salazar as Secretary of the Interior, Tucson's Center for Biological Diversity criticized the choice, claiming that Salazar's environmental r ... More >>

Fixers, feeders, and the strange, hidden world of feral cats

Stop resting easy, pal. You're not endangered anymore.​Last December, when President Barack Obama first announced the nomination of Colorado Senator Ken Salazar as Secretary of the Interior, Tucson's Center for Biological Diversity criticized the choice, claiming that Salazar's environmental r ... More >>

Kenny Be's Yard Arteology: Living life on the edge in East Colfax

The study of neighbors through their lawn decoration... ​ Figure 39. East Colfax: Emperor penguin on the edge All of the exotic creatures that come to Denver eventually end up on East Colfax Avenue. So, it should be no surprise to find a penguin perched on a porch in the neighborhood named ... More >>

Five things to do on Feral Cat Day

​Today, October 16, is National Feral Cat Day. This is not really a day of celebration; it's more of a day of scolding and sobering statistics, since the growing phenomenon of feral cats has a lot to do with the human capacity to abandon domesticated animals. Thirty thousand cats are euthanize ... More >>

Exxon-Mobil: admitted bird killers

Talk about paying at the pump.​Exxon-Mobil had a bad day in court in Denver yesterday. The firm pleaded guilty to killing migratory birds in five states, including Colorado. The size of the fine and community-service payments Exxon-Mobil has agreed to pony up -- $600,000 -- is, to use an avian ... More >>

In Colorado, it's not about why the wildlife cross the road, but whether they'll survive the trip

Talk about paying at the pump.​Exxon-Mobil had a bad day in court in Denver yesterday. The firm pleaded guilty to killing migratory birds in five states, including Colorado. The size of the fine and community-service payments Exxon-Mobil has agreed to pony up -- $600,000 -- is, to use an avian ... More >>

Caution: A herd of bull elephants is coming to the Denver Zoo

Talk about paying at the pump.​Exxon-Mobil had a bad day in court in Denver yesterday. The firm pleaded guilty to killing migratory birds in five states, including Colorado. The size of the fine and community-service payments Exxon-Mobil has agreed to pony up -- $600,000 -- is, to use an avian ... More >>

Kenny Be's Hip Tip: Green jobs of the new energy economy

Amid coyote fever, mountain lions ask: What about us?

Grrrrrr. A couple of recent coyote-related incidents (read about them here and here) have kept the yipping varmints in the local news -- when newspapers and TV stations haven't been reporting about the travels of a certain lovesick wolf, that is. When the hell did Colorado media turn into the Disco ... More >>

Wake-Up Call: Forget coyotes. What about cougars?

Denver is in a tizzy over coyotes. Greenwood Village wants to shoot them. Denver wants to talk them to death, and will host a meeting Thursday to do just that. And not a moment too soon, apparently, because on Saturday evening, a 51-year-old woman walking a 75-pound lab near her home in the 3900 ... More >>

For the Birds

This bird-watching session requires binoculars and a chili spoon.