State of the Rockies
State of the Rockies Project
Study Suggests Substantial Snowpack Loss at West’s Ski Resorts by 2085Snowpack on April 1 is estimated to decline substantially at all major ski resorts in the Rockies according to a study recently released in the 2006 Colorado College State of the Rockies Report Card. Projected snowpack losses range from 26% in Teton County, Wyoming (home to Jackson Hole), to 89% in Taos County, New Mexico, which could have devastating affects on the ski industry and communities in the region. Additionally, the region’s river basins, which depend on spring snowmelt to supply water to the region’s farms and municipalities, would see similarly drastic losses. And ecoregions in the Rockies will see temperature changes in the range of 5-7 degrees Celsius, putting serious stress on species in the region.
The State of the Rockies Project hired ATMOS Research and Consulting to downscale the HadCM3 global climate model for the 8-state Rocky Mountain West, outputting temperature, precipitation, and snowpack in 1976 and 2085 in 12 kilometer grids across the region. State of the Rockies analyzed the data to assess climate’s future impact on the region’s water resources, tourism, and ecosystems. Although these specific findings are not necessarily what will happen (since modeling climate is a tricky endeavor), this is a very realistic scenario, using a highly regarded, middle of the road climate model. The report suggests that mitigating fossil fuel use is important to minimizing human-induced climate change, but climate change is already underway. Therefore, it’s time to start seriously considering the implications of climate change and corresponding adaptation strategies. Click here for the Climate Change section of the report (PDF).
Tourism on the Up
2005 Tourists Spend More at Glacier than Yellowstone
Glacier National Park raked in the largest number of non-resident dollars in 2005, topping Yellowstone National Park. Glacier, the Flathead Business Journal reports, was the largest state contributor of non-resident dollars. Even though Yellowstone sees more visitors (2.8 million in 2005 compared to Glacier’s 1.9 million), Glacier tourists stay longer and spend more money, suggesting that places like Glacier Park are in synch with Montana’s Tourism and Recreation 5-year Strategic Plan, which indicates the aspiration to focus on high-value visitors, or people with enough money to spend, spend, spend.
Good weather and no major forest fires made 2005 a big year for tourism in Montana, with 10 million people visiting (a 4% increase). Tourism also created about 36,000 jobs for Montana in 2005.
Norma Nickerson, director of University of Montana’s Institute for Tourism and Recreational Research, predicts a 2% increase in nonresident travel to Montana in 2006. We have yet to see how rising gas prices will affect the industry.
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State of the Rockies Project
Report Shows Rockies States are Neglected in National PoliticsThe Rocky Mountain region's distinctive features -- its vast open space, large proportion of federal lands, aridity, small population coupled with rapid population growth, abundance of natural amenities and natural resources, and popularity to vacationers -- create a unique set of challenges for the region, which are often ignored in national politics. The rest of the nation is able to take advantage of the region as it takes gold, timber, and vacation homes while leaving behind toxic landscapes, devastated forests, and cold-bed communities. A new report in the 2006 Colorado College State of the Rockies Report Card, "A Common Western Voice," urges that the region develop a strong voice in regional issues and suggests that hosting an early, blocked Western states presidential primary may be just the tool for doing so.
But is the Rockies Region really treated this poorly? Can the region work together to articulate a common voice? Is a blocked presidential primary enough to make the voice heard, and is it even a realistic possibility? (Click here for the "A Common
Western Voice" section of the Report Card (PDF)). Share your thoughts!
Editor's note: Bryan Hurlbutt is a co-author of the State of the Rockies Report Card. We'll be releasing sections of the report in the coming weeks for discussion here on New West.
2006 State of the Rockies
Rockies Growing More Than Three Times Faster Than U.S., Report Shows
Some still hold a romantic view of the Mountain West as a lawless, backward land of rugged cowboys roaming remote locations, fending for themselves, and living off the land. This report, just released in the 2006 Colorado College State of the Rockies Report Card, dispels some of these common myths. "Rockies Baseline—Vital Signs for a Region in Transition" shows that in the Rockies region we are well-educated, highly mobile, and for better or worse, most of us work in offices. Additionally, the region’s population is growing over three times faster than that of the U.S. (Click here for the Rockies Baseline section of the report (PDF))
What’s your experience? Do you and your friends work on your own off of the land, or do you work with others in an office? Is the cowboy myth completely wrong, or is it still an important part of understanding the West? Read the report and respond!
Editor's note: The author is the co-author of the 2006 Colorado College State of the Rockies Report Card. We will be periodically releasing PDFs of the report throughout the next several weeks for you discussion.
Grokking on the Holiday
Jesus Needs Respect, Starbucks Gives Comfort, Montana Mobile Users Get No LoveIn holiday news, Opus Dei, the conservative Catholic group made infamous by Dan Brown’s ‘The Da Vinci Code,’ is asking Sony to show Jesus a little love. Sony will release a Tom Hanks-headlining movie next month based on the best-selling book. ‘The Da Vinci Code’ has enraged some conservative religious groups, especially Opus Dei, due to the book’s ‘this might not just be fiction’ story based around a Jesus + Mary Magdalene = kids cover up.
And since we can’t possibly hear enough about big box store and Starbucks invasions these days, historian Bryant Simon is here to tell us about the ‘comfort culture’ sold by the cup each day by the gigantic coffee chain.
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STATE OF THE ROCKIES
Report: Unsettling Climate Changes Hover Over Ski IndustryThursday's panel discussion on climate change brought together scientists, environmental advocates and policy specialists to combine data and commentary on the hot (literally) topic of climate change. Not to be interchanged with global warming, climate change refers to both cyclical and provoked changes in temperature, moisture and other climactic factors on the earth's surface and in the atmosphere. Moderator Matthew Reuer of the Colorado College environmental science program led the discussion, which ranged from light-hearted commentary to heavy-duty data analysis in exploration of what the Rockies can expect from above and below over the next several decades.
Panel members included student researcher Gregory Zimmerman, Colorado State Climatologist Roger Pielke Sr., UC Boulder Professor of Environmental Studies Roger Pielke Jr., and Aspen Skiing Company's Director of Environmental Affairs, Auden Schendler.
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No ATVs, Please
New Website Celebrates Montana’s Swan Range, Encourages Keeping it WildWe love them, we hike them. We bike them and camp in them. And they’ve always been there. But it’s time to stop taking our forests and natural playgrounds for granted. We need to keep them wild, sacred and motor-free. These were the ideas behind creation of the new website about Northwest Montana’s Swan Mountain Range, Swanrange.org.
I asked Ben Long, one of the website’s co-creators, whose brainchild the website was. “It was much more organic than that,” he told me. Look a little closer at the site and you’ll see what he means. The site, it turns out, was the result of a lot of collaboration between people who love the same wilderness. A page titled “People of the Swan” has pictures and testimonials from artists, business people, hikers and your basic outdoor-loving Montanans. Hell, even Miss Montana USA loves the Swan.
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STATE OF THE ROCKIES
Report: Defining Environmental Justice, Finding a Common VoiceAs Westerners, most of us have a passionate relationship with our natural environment – whether we’re using it for our own subsistence, to earn a living, to find solace or opportunities for recreation, or to appreciate the aesthetic beauty it offers. But in our efforts to appreciate and protect it, we’re often overlooking another victim of environmental changes and dangers: ourselves.
Yesterday Colorado College Professor of Sociology Wade Roberts led an important discussion on the equities of environmental hazards in our region, followed by contributions from student researcher Angela Banfill, EPA specialist Jean Belille, environmental lawyer William Snape III, University of Colorado Professor of Sociology Liam Downey, University of Colorado Research Associate Kathryn Mutz and University of Wyoming Professor of Religious Studies and The Environment Sally Palmer.
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STATE OF THE ROCKIES
Report: The New Ranch May Be Key to the Success of the New WestThere’s a saying in farming and ranching circles that asphalt is the last crop. That paints a dim picture, but Tuesday’s panelists chose instead to focus not on lamenting the issue, but on showing through example how modifying traditional ranching lands and practices to meet new challenges has renewed the definition of success for ranchers and habitat alike throughout the Rockies.
Moderator Jack Wold, president of Wold Oil and Gas and a rancher himself, led the discussion on the threats and signs of hope in Rockies ranching, with student researcher Andrew Yarbrough, author and environmentalist Dan Dagget, ranchers and leaders of the Country Natural Beef co-op Doc and Connie Hatfield, rancher Dale Lasater, New Seasons Market CEO Brian Rohter and rancher and Wyoming State Senator John Schiffer.
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STATE OF THE ROCKIES
Report: Population Threat Looms on Land Conservation and BiodiversityThe panel discussions yesterday on conservation and biodiversity followed the thread of an important overriding message: the short term benefits of our lifestyles can, and in many ways will, lead to the long-term peril of our region. Faculty Director Walter Hecox, Program Coordinator Bryan Hurlbutt and Research Manager Caitlin O’Brady each took a turn providing an introduction to the materials and conference topics and later, expert and student panel members presented questions, findings and ideas on protecting our unique landscapes and habitats and addressing threatened, endangered and invasive species.
In both land conservation and issues impacting biodiversity, it was population growth that represented the largest threat to both, as growth in the Rockies continues to outpace the national average. Bryan Hurlbutt walked conference-goers through a variety of data illustrating the squeeze that growth puts on the land and resources throughout the Rockies but he and others were careful to note that despite the concern, there’s hope that a balance can be struck between profit and protection, and that together we can work to find a way to reap the benefits of growth while minimizing the damages.
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