The Nevada Independent

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The Nevada Independent

Environment

Climate change is getting worse in Nevada. Why did Democrats stop talking about it?

Voters tend to worry about global warming while worrying more about other issues. Democrats have noticed and changed how they discuss the environment.

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Indy Explains

How much water and power do data centers really use?

There are more than 70 data centers either operating in or planned for Nevada, but Nevadans are turning out in droves at public meetings to protest them.  Despite this public disdain, almost everyone uses them. In this explainer, The Indy separates data center facts from fiction. 

Is Nevada in for a wet and wild winter?

A very strong, or "super," El Niño, is forecast for this winter. Historical records, however, show that even very strong El Niños have variable effects on Nevada, with some portions of the state receiving above-normal precipitation and other portions receiving below-normal precipitation.

Full fire suppression by 10 a.m. Outdated rule returns — sort of

After a series of catastrophic blazes in the early 1900s, the U.S. Forest Service mandated the "10 a.m. rule," declaring that wildland fires should be put out by 10 a.m. the day after they were reported. The plan backfired, leaving forests with debris that fueled more dangerous fires.

The Trump admin upended how we fight fire. Then came West's worst fire season in years.

Fast-moving fires have burned millions of acres and destroyed hundreds of homes and buildings in the West, including hundreds of thousands of acres in Nevada. The Indy partnered with five other nonprofit newsrooms in the West to show how on-the-ground changes made by the Trump administration have affected the ability to fight fires amid increasingly destructive conditions. 

Tahoe's bears can get too comfortable with humans. These dogs help bring back healthy fear

The Nevada Department of Wildlife's Karelian Bear Dogs have become indispensable components of the department's operations, flushing bears from urban dens, locating injured bears and hazing human-habituated bears by chasing and nipping at them as they are released back into the wild. The goal is to ensure bears can still live in places such as Tahoe that are now teeming with humans.