wildfires

Reservoirs across the West are slowly losing space to store water as dirt, sand and other sediment pile up behind dams, according to new, sweeping, nationwide research.

Governor Joe Lombardo signed an executive order directing the Nevada Housing Division to provide funding for Washoe County residents affected by the Bug, Fred Mountain and Hawk fires.

The Washoe Regional Emergency Information center will provide resources for residents affected by the Hawk Fire.

At the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony evacuation shelter, tribal members find refuge and community as the Bug and Stallion fires continue to burn.

Several casino-hotels in Reno are offering discounted room rates Monday night to community members affected by fires, including the Bug Fire.

The two fires have burned over 17,000 acres and evacuations have been ordered in northern Reno as of Monday morning.

Longer wildfire seasons can blanket communities in smoke. Summer heat records continue to rise. Drought remains a persistent concern for water supplies, agriculture and ecosystems.

A new report from the American Lung Association finds about half of U.S. children are living in areas with unhealthy air quality, and several Mountain West cities rank among the most polluted in the country.

A coalition of environmental groups is suing the Environmental Protection Agency, alleging the agency missed a key deadline tied to a stricter national standard for soot pollution. The case could affect air quality protections across the Mountain West.

Snowpack is often described as the West’s largest natural reservoir, storing water through the winter and slowly releasing it into rivers and reservoirs each spring. But new research suggests the way forests are managed can influence how much of that snow actually becomes part of the water supply.