Mining Episodes

Field recordings from Amargosa Valley and Joshua Tree capture residents defending Ash Meadows from mining and protesting cuts that threaten National Park Service staff and visitor safety.

Kristen Brengel explains how mass federal layoffs and disrupted seasonal hiring damage National Park Service operations, visitor safety, conservation work, and gateway communities.

Chris Clarke talks with chemist Michael Ketterer about plutonium contamination in Acid Canyon, isotopic tracing, downstream risks, environmental justice, and the enduring consequences of Los Alamos's nuclear legacy.

Chris Clarke examines the final Western Solar Plan and argues that fighting climate change shouldn't require sacrificing intact desert ecosystems, pointing to parking lots and disturbed land as alternatives.

Utility-scale solar development can carry substantial ecological costs when projects are built across intact desert habitat. Chris Clarke talks with Kevin Emmerich of Basin and Range Watch about a proposal to protect thousands of acres in Nevada's Pahrump Valley as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern. They discuss threats to desert tortoises, habitat connectivity, and the cumulative effects of industrial development—and how an ACEC designation could give federal land managers another tool for directing damaging projects away from sensitive landscapes.

Must protecting the climate require sacrificing intact desert landscapes? Chris Clarke examines that argument through the controversy over Rover Critical Minerals' proposed lithium exploration near Ash Meadows and Amargosa Valley. After a company representative suggested mining opponents might be aligned with fossil-fuel interests, Chris challenges the assumption that opposing destructive renewable-energy development means opposing climate action. The episode asks a larger question: can society address climate change without simply reproducing the extractive economic model that helped create the crisis?

Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge protects one of the world's most remarkable concentrations of desert springs and endemic species, but a new mining proposal raises concerns about the groundwater sustaining them. Mason Voehl of the Amargosa Conservancy returns to discuss lithium exploration proposed by Rover Critical Minerals and the campaign to stop it. Chris and Mason examine the mining claims, the initial pause secured by conservation groups, and why industrial activity near Ash Meadows could have consequences extending far beyond the footprint of a mine.

When developers proposed a large glamping project called Flamingo 640 in California's Mojave Desert, local residents organized to stop it. Chris Clarke talks with Caroline Partamian, Justin Merino, and Luke Basulto about concerns over wildlife, traffic, noise, and the project's effects on the surrounding rural community. They recount how neighbors organized, challenged the proposal, and ultimately prevailed—a case study in how local activism can successfully shape land-use decisions and protect desert communities.

Even after the Trump administration ended, border wall construction—and its environmental consequences—continued in unexpected ways. Featuring reporting from The Border Chronicle, this episode examines ongoing border infrastructure projects, their effects on wildlife and desert ecosystems, and the complicated politics surrounding conservation along the U.S.–Mexico border.

Wonder Valley is more than a quiet Mojave community—it's a place where residents are working together to defend the character of their desert home. This episode explores the challenges facing Wonder Valley, from industrial development to land-use conflicts, and highlights how local organizing can help protect both communities and the landscapes that surround them.

The debate over protecting California's western Joshua tree continued long after the initial proposal for legal protection. This episode provides an update on the political and scientific discussions surrounding the species and explains why decisions made today will shape the future of one of the Mojave Desert's defining plants.

At a demonstration in the Nevada Mojave, environmental advocate Shannon Salter discussed the growing pressures facing the desert Southwest and the campaigns working to protect public lands and wildlife. Together we explore grassroots organizing, effective advocacy, and why individual voices continue to make a difference.