Pacific Northwest

Rick Desautel, flanked by his daughter and his wife, Linda (right), celebrates his acquittal of illegal hunting charges outside the provincial courthouse in Nelson, British Columbia, in March 2017.

Canada says the Sinixt tribe is extinct. The tribe's American descendants disagree.

What do you do when a country has officially declared your people extinct? One descendant of the Sinixt tribe went on an illegal elk hunt.

Canada says the Sinixt tribe is extinct. The tribe's American descendants disagree.
Oil flows through pipes to the Westridge Marine near Vancouver, BC. A second, much larger pipeline here is part of Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau's plan to increase exports of oil from Alberta's tar sands region. Opponents say that would increase

This Canadian oil pipeline could cause the next great controversy

This Canadian oil pipeline could cause the next great controversy
Beijing power plant

Globe-trotting pollutants pose a larger threat to public health than previously thought

Globe-trotting pollutants pose a larger threat to public health than previously thought
Tsegay

Organizations try to fight 'brain waste' and get highly trained immigrants back to work

Organizations try to fight 'brain waste' and get highly trained immigrants back to work
Rancher Bill Johnson and wildlife researcher Carol Bogezi on Johnson's ranch in Washington's Teanaway Valley. Bogezi has been working with Johnson and other ranchers in eastern Washington to try to find a way to help them live more amicably with wolves.

How Washington ranchers are learning to cope with wolves, with lessons from Uganda

How Washington ranchers are learning to cope with wolves, with lessons from Uganda
Washington's Yakima Valley produces a quarter of the world's hops, but warming temperutres in the region have growers and brewers concerned about the future of the vital crop.

The climate for making beer is changing, so brewers and hops growers are, too

You can't make beer without hops, but climate change is threatening the future of the crop in a place that grows a quarter of all the world's supply — Washington state. That's got growers and brewers there and around the world scrambling to make changes to improve the resilience and sustainability of their industry.

The climate for making beer is changing, so brewers and hops growers are, too
Orca leaping

Calling over boat noise is making endangered orcas hungrier

Undersea noise levels are increasing in the Pacific Northwest, as thousands of freighters, ferries and other vessels motor up and down the coast. Some new research details how all that noise might make life harder for endangered marine mammals.

Calling over boat noise is making endangered orcas hungrier
Wildlife cops

Underfunded wildlife enforcement in the Pacific Northwest fails to keep up with poachers

Wildlife trafficking is a global problem and the US is not immune. In the Pacific Northwest, a small law enforcement and judicial team polices Washington and Oregon for wildlife infractions, but limited resources, budget woes and loose laws allow poachers to evade penalties.

Underfunded wildlife enforcement in the Pacific Northwest fails to keep up with poachers
Bill Moore and Judith Fearing are members of Nelson Friends of Refugees. They've raised money and secured an apartment for a family of Syrian refugees. All they need now are the refugees. But they're still waiting.

Some Canadians really want to sponsor Syrian refugees. Turns out it's harder than they thought.

Canada has a unique program that allows local residents to sponsor the resettlement of a refugee family. This group in Nelson, British Columbia, is all set — except for one thing.

Some Canadians really want to sponsor Syrian refugees. Turns out it's harder than they thought.
Capt. Jennifer Peace realized she was transgender while serving in Afghanistan.

Soldiers don't have to call this transgender officer 'sir' any more

The Pentagon announced that is has lifted its ban on transgender people serving openly in the military. That's big news for this transgender captain.

Soldiers don't have to call this transgender officer 'sir' any more
Canyon grassland

Invasive species threaten native grasslands in the Pacific Northwest

The Blue Mountains in Washington State are home to some rare wildflowers and grasses, but invasive plant species are threatening to take over this delicate ecosystem.

Invasive species threaten native grasslands in the Pacific Northwest
Sturgeon

Pacific Northwest sturgeon suffer as worldwide demand for caviar soars

Most caviar comes from the Caspian Sea, but the decline of sturgeon there is driving fishermen and poachers to fish populations in the Pacific Northwest’s Columbia River. Wildlife managers have resorted to patrolling along the shorelines, looking for signs of illegally caught sturgeon. They've even gone undercover to meet with poachers.

Pacific Northwest sturgeon suffer as worldwide demand for caviar soars
Easton Glacier, Mount Baker

How will the Pacific Northwest change when its glaciers are gone?

Glaciers are key contributors to drinking water supplies, hydropower generation and salmon survival in the Pacific Northwest. Scientists aren’t sure exactly when the glaciers will disappear. It could be within a few decades. It has been 4,000 years since the glaciers have receded this much.

How will the Pacific Northwest change when its glaciers are gone?
"Kayaktivists" demonstrate in Seattle's Elliot Bay against the arrival last month of the Shell's massive Polar Pioneer oil rig, rising behind them above the city's waterfront. Shell is using Seattle as a staging area for its new offshore drilling operatio

The road to Arctic oil drilling runs through Seattle. People there are trying to block it.

President Obama has given Shell the green light to drill for oil in the Arctic Ocean, but activists and politicians in Seattle are throwing up as many stop signs as they can as the drilling rig preps there for its journey north. It's the latest flashpoint in the growing international anti-fossil fuel movement.

The road to Arctic oil drilling runs through Seattle. People there are trying to block it.
An orca whale breaching off the coast of British Columbia, Canada.

Noisy waters are bad news for the orcas of the Pacific Northwest

The waters of the Pacific Northwest are busy and noisy, which is bad news for orcas. The endangered whales are having to "yell" to make their calls heard over all the marine traffic, which means more energy used, more food needed and even more stress on the orca population.

Noisy waters are bad news for the orcas of the Pacific Northwest