Episodes

Chris Clarke talks with public lands journalist Jonathan Thompson about Utah's lawsuit seeking greater state control over federal lands and what it could mean for development, recreation, conservation, and NEPA.

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.

In a departure from the show's usual reporting, Chris Clarke reads from Walking with Zeke, recalling a moonlit camping trip with his dog in Red Rock Canyon. The essay explores the physical and emotional bond between dogs and humans, the persistence of memory, and the ways particular desert landscapes become inseparable from those we have loved within them. It's a quiet meditation on companionship, place, loss, and the connections between caring for the natural world and caring for those we consider family.

Desert snakes inspire fascination, fear, and a remarkable amount of misinformation. Chris Clarke and Lucas Basulto trade snake stories while examining some of the misconceptions surrounding these important reptiles. They discuss snake behavior, bites and appropriate responses, road mortality, habitat protection, and how to coexist safely with snakes rather than treating every encounter as a threat. Along the way, they offer resources for identifying snakes throughout the desert Southwest and explain why these often-maligned animals matter to desert ecosystems.

For decades, the Chevron doctrine gave federal agencies substantial latitude to interpret ambiguous laws passed by Congress. The Supreme Court's decision to overturn that doctrine shifts more authority over those interpretations to federal judges. Chris Clarke explains what Chevron deference was, why its demise matters, and how the change could affect environmental regulation and the federal agencies responsible for protecting wildlife, clean water, public lands, and other natural resources.

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?

Darkness is an essential part of the desert environment. Chris Clarke talks with photographer Mitch Miller and conservationist Steve Bardwell about protecting the night sky from artificial light. They explore the effects of light pollution on wildlife and human health, the beauty and challenges of night-sky photography, and San Bernardino County's efforts to control light trespass. They also offer practical ways residents can reduce unnecessary outdoor lighting while improving visibility and preserving one of the desert's increasingly scarce natural resources: darkness.

Surviving and thriving in desert heat require a combination of knowledge, preparation, and vigilance. Understanding the immediate dangers, recognizing early symptoms of heat injuries, and taking practical precautions can help ensure safety for everyone venturing into these extreme conditions. By sharing these insights, we can better equip ourselves and our communities to handle the increasing temperatures and enjoy the desert’s unique beauty responsibly. Become a desert defender!: https://90m...

Along the Colorado River, Daniel Leivas and his family are restoring traditional Chemehuevi agriculture on land profoundly altered by twentieth-century water development. Leivas, Southern Paiute-Chemehuevi from Lake Havasu, talks with Chris Clarke about rebuilding a farm, reviving ancestral growing practices, working with wildlife, and reconnecting land, water, culture, and spirit. Their conversation also examines the larger history of water projects that inundated or transformed Native lands—and the resilience involved in bringing traditional relationships with those landscapes back to life.

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.

Desert plants often look timeless, and some nearly are. Chris Clarke explores the astonishing longevity of desert vegetation, from the roughly 11,700-year-old King Clone creosote ring to chollas and Mojave yuccas that can survive far longer than their appearance suggests. He also explains how researchers estimate plant ages when tree rings aren't available, using historical photographs, repeated observations, and long-term ecological studies. The result changes the way we see seemingly ordinary plants: some desert landscapes contain living organisms whose histories stretch back centuries or millennia.

Along the Rio Grande in El Paso, Rio Bosque Wetlands Park provides a rare riparian refuge within the Chihuahuan Desert—and a vision of what ecological restoration can accomplish. Chris Clarke talks with conservationist Jon Rezendes about threats from proposed highway development, community efforts to protect the wetlands, and the extraordinary diversity of birds and other wildlife that depend on them. Their conversation expands into a larger vision of rewilding the Rio Grande Valley, restoring ecological connections, and perhaps someday welcoming Mexican wolves back to the region.