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A greenhouse housing hundreds of thousands of western white pine (Pinus monticola) seedlings.

Restoring forests in areas where they once stood is an important step toward halting climate change. It helps to ensure a host of other environmental services, too, like provision of clean air and water. But without significantly increased investment in tree nursery infrastructure, the U.S. will be unable to unlock its full reforestation potential, researchers are warning. Read more»

1K, young California condor, leaves the release cage after receiving its wing tag, which will help biologists monitor its travels and health.

About 1,900 people watched online Saturday as, one-by-one, four young California condors flapped through a hole in their release cage to take to the skies above Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, casting shadows on the windswept rocks below. Read more»

The San Pedro River is at the center of two lawsuits filed by Arizona environmental groups in the hopes of better regulating groundwater pumping and livestock grazing.

The San Pedro rivers is the subject of lawsuits filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, the Sierra Club and other conservation groups. Cronkite News looks at the health of the San Pedro, one of the few undammed rivers in the Southwest. Read more»

A report on Verde River Watershed earlier this year found approximately 44% of stream miles were ranked with moderate to significant damage from cattle.

It’s a tale of two rivers: The Verde, which flows south from near Flagstaff to metro Phoenix, and the San Pedro, which begins in Mexico and flows north to Winkelman. Read more»

The San Pedro River is the only gap in a 40-mile stretch of border wall between Naco, Arizona, and the Huachuca Mountains to the west.

A U.S. Army base nestled at the foot of a southern Arizona mountain range is threatening a sensitive desert waterway sometimes called America’s most endangered river, two environmental groups said in a federal lawsuit Friday. Read more»

The Verde River, which flows more than 170 miles, starts in north-central Arizona and winds down into the Phoenix area, where it empties into the Salt River.

The Verde River, which stretches more than 170 miles through Arizona, was rated a C+ this month in the first Verde Watershed Report Card. Read more»

Scott Bordenkircher, who directs technology and innovation at APS, says battery storage will be developed over the next six years to store solar energy. “To put that in perspective, that’s the equivalent of about 3 million solar panels or 10,000 electric vehicles.”

Arizona Public Service Co., is investing in tech required to make solar power work for customers even after the sun goes down. Read more»

Scott Nicol, co-chair of the Sierra Club’s Borderlands Campaign, stands in front of the border fence in Hidalgo in far South Texas. This section, which sits atop a levee, runs between a national wildlife refuge and a local nature center.

At the U.S.-Mexico border, scientists say existing fencing is hurting wildlife and warn that a continuous wall could devastate many species. The barriers in place have made it harder for animals to find food, water and mates. Many, like jaguars, gray wolves and ocelots, are already endangered. Read more»

Arizona Sens. John McCain, left, and Jeff Flake speak in support of their bill to settle a water dispute between Freeport Minerals and the Hualapai tribe. McCain said they are willing to work with anyone who has concerns over the bill.

Tribal and state lawmakers urged a Senate panel to pass a water-rights deal between the Hualapai and Freeport Minerals Corp., saying time is fast running out. The deal for tribal water rights in the Bill Williams River watershed is backed by the state's congressional delegation. Read more»

Four girls wade into the newly quenched Colorado River channel on March 27, part of the 'pulse flow' — an experimental release of millions of gallons of water from the Morelos Dam.

For the next eight weeks, millions of gallons of water will gush from the Morelos Dam west of Yuma, reinvigorating the bone-dry river channel of the Colorado River as it flows south from the U.S.-Mexico border. Last week, a crowd gathered to celebrate the sudden appearance of flowing water, the result of an bi-national agreement to release water as part of a five-year restoration project. Read more»

Bureau of Indian Affairs forester technician Butch Gregg, in 2011 file photo, lights wood piles as part of forest-management on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation. Such thinning efforts helped stop the Wallow fire at the reservation’s boundary.

Arizona lawmakers invoked the memory of the 19 fallen Granite Mountain Hotshot firefighters at a congressional hearing Thursday where they urged bureaucrats to improve forest management to prevent such fires in the future. Read more»

The Monday Political Face-Off featuring commentators John Munger and Jeff Rogers. Plus, the Nature Conservancy and GOP mayoral candidate Rick Grinnell. Read more»

A map of the wet and dry areas of the San Pedro River in 2010.

On Saturday, volunteers will walk lengths of the San Pedro River as part of an annual survey of the river, recording the distances on the streambed where water is present. Read more»

David Salisbury, CEO of Resolution Copper Mining LLC, explains the company’s plans for U.S. Forest Service land where it wants to mine a copper lode more than a mile underground.

For Superior's mayor, it only makes sense to support a plan to mine a huge copper deposit deep below the national forest just east of town. Resolution Copper Mining LLC says the mine would employ hundreds. He has another reason to support the mine despite concerns raised by Native Americans, conservation groups and some residents: the company promises millions of dollars over the life of the mine provided the Town Council formally back the project. Read more» 1

Who will take on the eventual GOP nominee? Tucson City Councilman Rodney Glassman is still exploring a race, but has yet to formally declare. Politco names Southern Arizona businesswoman Nan Stockholm Walden as a potential candidate. Read more»