Desert News, 7/1

Monsoon in Tucson means mating season for the Sonoran Desert Toad

Kenny Darr, KGUN, 6/25

Of all the amphibians that appear during Sonoran Desert monsoons, the olive-green Sonoran Desert toad is the best known — and the most dangerous to pets.

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Monsoon season is near. Here’s what to expect in Las Vegas

Alan Halaly, Las Vegas Review Journal, 6/25 

Public works crews have hardened Vegas’ infrastructure as best they can to channel flash flood waters out to Lake Mead, but there’s only so much they can do to prepare.

A New Danger at America’s National Parks

Kylie Mohr, The Atlantic, 6/26

Search and rescue operations at Death Valley are made more dangerous by extreme heat for all the reasons you might expect — and also because rescue helicopters don’t work in extreme heat.

As California’s climate grows ever more hostile, a Joshua tree rescue plan takes shape

Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 6/26

As public outcry grows over the Aratina Solar Project’s plan to kill thousands of Joshua trees, the state of California pieces together a recovery plan for the tree.

Pahrump residents anxious to oppose medical waste facility

Robin Hebrock, Pahrump Valley Times, 6/28

Locals planned to attend the Nye County Commissioners’ meeting on June 18 to oppose MediWaste Disposal LLC’s plan to open a medical waste processing plant in town, but the company was a no-show.

New research center at Sul Ross State University aims to better understand, manage water resources

Mary Cantrell, Big Bend Sentinel, 6/26

“It just makes sense that our university — located smack dab in the middle of the Trans-Pecos — steps up and becomes a leader in water conservation for this region.”

Pershing County Commissioners nix Burning Man's compensation package

Peggy Jones, Great Basin Sun, 6/25

Burning Man organizers offered the county $400K per year to cover law enforcement costs for the annual event in the Black Rock Desert. County Commissioners voted unanimously to reject the offer, citing increased costs to the county.

Farmers in El Paso area cope with hotter weather, drier days

Priscilla Totiyapungprasert, El Paso Matters, 6/27

Pecan orchards and row crops struggle under the Trans-Pecos’ new climate regime.

St. George got hammered in the national media as a water waster. Can the green spot in the desert become a saver?

Mark Eddington, Salt Lake Tribune, 6/24

The powers that be in Washington County were counting on a new pipeline from Lake Powell to fuel the region’s frantic growth. That pipeline isn’t happening anytime soon, and now an unlikely coalition of regulators and developers is pushing cities to adopt aggressive water conservation standards.

3 migrants found dead by Border Patrol agents in Southern AZ desert

Paul Ingram, Tucson Sentinel, 6/28

The Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge remains one of the deadliest places for migrants seeking a better life in the US.