Rocky Mountain Community Radio

Some living trees in the Uncompahgre measured 9% moisture this summer — drier than the legal limit for kiln-dried lumber. So why did the Gold Mountain Fire leave some whole hillsides untouched? KVNF news rode up Owl Creek Pass to find out, and the answer turns out to be a tree.

Students may be out of school, but the Mancos School Garden keeps growing. Volunteers help maintain crops that support education and local food banks.

Republican Jeff Hurd and Democrats Alex Kelloff and Dwayne Romero weigh in on some of the big environmental issues in Western and Southern Colorado.

Water experts, attorneys, and leaders on the Colorado Rivered convened for a conference at the University of Colorado Boulder. Prolonged drought, a warming climate and growing demands on the river have pushed it into a crisis.

SB20-83 limits where ICE agents can make arrests connected to courthouses.

As outside investors buy up mobile home parks, a coalition of local residents, nonprofits, governments and private donors are rallying together to inform state laws and regional strategies to preserve these communities as affordable housing.

Traditional forms of therapy don't work for everyone. Carbondale-based nonprofit WindWalkers offers horse-assisted services to fill that gap. This story is part of our "On the Ground" radio series, which highlights solutions to local and global issues from Roaring Fork and Colorado River valley organizations.

The Maroon Bells Scenic Area reopened for the season last week with a new rule for visitors arriving by e-bike. Riders now have to pay a five dollar entry fee — the same fee charged to motorcycles. As KDNK’s Betsy Welch reports, the new charge is part of a much larger conversation about how to manage one of Colorado’s busiest public lands destinations.

English in Action hosted its 8th annual Immigrant Voices event this month where speakers from across the region shared their life stories. This year, however, organizers had to consider the political climate.

The Trump Administration is directing federal agencies like the Department of the Interior to ramp up mining operations on federal public lands. The order singles out copper, uranium, potash, and gold.