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Pumping iron became my armor

By Crista Worthy

“Within two months I was getting muscles. I have never been harassed since.”

Photograph of Crista Worth in competition shape, courtesy of Crista Worthy

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Sometimes, poison is the only thing that works

By Ted Williams

The ashy storm-petrel, threatened by mice on the Farallon Islands.

Photograph courtesy of Ted Williams

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The West badly needs a restoration economy

By Jonathan Thompson

“Restoration work is not fixing beautiful machinery … It is accepting an abandoned responsibility,”

Photograph courtesy of Allan Nash, open pit coal mine in Wyoming’s Powder River Basin

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Billionaire mine owner leaves a tiny town in the lurch

By Dave Marston

“..a visitor to the town notices abandoned cars parked willy-nilly and piles of junk that look as old as the town itself. “

Photograph Courtesy of Somerset Water District website

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“Gun nut” has a warning

By Brian Sexton

“The so-called patriots of today risk the very rights they’ve pledged to uphold with their lives.”

Image courtesy of STNGR industries

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“Look at me” culture leaves too many marks

By Marjorie “Slim” Woodruff

“The pioneers endured drought, famine, disease, and death in order to reach the West and scratch their names on the wall.”

Photograph by Lloyd Bunk, courtesy of Unsplash

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Conservative Republican has a personal mission

By Ron Keine

“I’m living proof of why people should not trust their government with the death penalty”

Photograph by Damir Spanic, courtesy of Unsplash

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All-electric is the way to go

By Auden Schendler Ted White

“But perhaps the most challenging task of all is to decarbonize buildings.”

Photograph by Michael Wilson, courtesy of Unsplash

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Who Calls the Shots on the Colorado River?

By Dave Marston

Once you pay for fallowed fields, you’ll end up with landowners who are investors first, like Water Asset Management.

Photograph by Jon Flobrant, courtesy of Unsplash

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Like it or not, We Learned a Few Things

By 'Asta Bowen

“2020 put the lie to the notion that we are in charge.”

Photo by Zo Razafindramamba, courtesy of Unsplash

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When Water Dries Up, It Can Be Deadly

By Pepper Trail

“The dams that choke the Klamath River may be finally nearing removal”

Photograph by Markus Spiske, Courtesy of Unsplash

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One State Still Craves Coal

By Dustin Bleizeffer

“It seems a shame that the state isn’t onboard with its Western neighbors to help decarbonize the grid.”

Photo by AJ Nash

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What others are saying See More

The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction, Colorado places a premium on content that examines management of public lands and natural resources. We’re big fans of Writers on the Range. The contributors come from all walks of life, but their column always hit home with our readers, for whom access to public lands is an important part of the lifestyle in western Colorado. Cutbacks to the newsroom have seriously hampered our coverage of the environment. Most often these stories are best told by people who have first-hand experience dealing with a particular challenges — from loving favorite trails to death to rebuilding coal communities or threats to the sagebrush sea. Writers on the Range consistently identifies problems and solutions in a thorough and engaging way. We need more of this kind of advocacy journalism on our opinion pages because it fosters understanding and dialogue about the unique living conditions in the American West.

Andy Smith, Opinion Page Editor
Grand Junction Sentinel, Grand Junction, CO

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