Latest news with #BillingsGazette
CTV News
16-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
B.C. hunter fined thousands for poaching bighorn sheep
In this Dec. 28, 2004 file photo, a bighorn sheep ram grazes along the North Fork of the Shoshone River, just off Wyoming Highway between Cody, Wyo. and Yellowstone National Park. (Ap Photo/ Billings Gazette, Allison Batdorff )
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Column: Vegas lights and press box fights
Mar. 23—The passing of Norm Clarke, the eye patch-wearing Terry native who spent a lifetime in newspapers, has brought a flood of eulogies and remembrances from across the state and country. I can't pretend to know him as much as most people — he'd left the Billings Gazette long before I arrived there in 1991 — but we did cross paths, and I feel obligated to add a couple tales that I was lucky enough to be a part of. Things not important enough (I guess) to make the handful of 1,100-word obituaries Clarke inspired. One was a meeting of the Butte Press Club, a loosely-knit, fairly-organized group of Montana-based journalists who meet semi-regularly in the Mining City. In the early 90s we invited Clarke to speak, and he told stories of covering tragedies like nightclub fires and plane crashes and triumphs like the Big Red Machine baseball teams of 1975-76. I'll be honest: It wasn't a great speech. But once we guided Clarke to the adult beverage part of the Knights of Columbus and got him talking about the fistfight he had in the Riverfront Stadium press box... well. That was entertaining. Clarke was an Associated Press reporter and repeatedly finding scoops where the two Cincinnati daily newspapers — those were the days — were not. When a competing writer started calling his notes section "Eye-Openers," Clarke took offense and it came to a head before a National League game. A shaken Clarke then called his boss and was sent home — where he turned on his TV in time to see the dust-up lead the local news. Clarke would go on to bigger events, hob-knob with celebrities and get slapped by one: The late Pete Rose, whom Clarke had listed among the worst tippers in Las Vegas. For my money, Riverfront wins out. I don't know if the Reds won that day. I'm not certain this account wasn't embellished. But it's a heck of a story. Here's another. In late 2001 my fellow Gazetteer, Matt Bender, and I road-tripped to Tempe, Ariz. to watch his Oregon Ducks play Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl. Along the way we stayed with Clarke, at his condo overlooking the Las Vegas Strip. He took us to something called the "Red, White and Rubber Ball" and by the time we called it a night — after Bender dapped Gary Payton while we waited for valet — it was the morning and one of us needed a B12 shot. I saw Clarke a few times since, but only once did he send me a note saying, "It was nice hanging out with Montana's version of the Bush twins." He recovered to complete a long career of getting scoops on the national stage, the Montana journalism equivalent to — who? Mansfield, maybe? It was a life well-lived, and other than it ended too soon I can only think of one improvement. Rose should have tipped better. Fritz Neighbor can be reached at 406-758-4463 or at fneighbor@
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Montana farmers are facing a new, life-threatening crisis: 'It was extremely frightening'
For Montana farmers, warming global temperatures are putting their farms — and mental health — at risk. Over the past few years, Missoula-area organic farmer Elan Love has faced a barrage of climate-related assaults to his farm, including a severe grasshopper infestation, drought, extreme hail, record-low temperatures, and scorching surface soil temperatures that had his garlic "literally cooking," the Billings Gazette reported. Then, in 2023, the River Road East Fire, fueled by hot winds and dry grass, burned 17,000 of his 20,000 acres. "It was extremely frightening," Love told the Gazette. "There was nothing between us and the fire, except for ... dry grass." All of this has had an impact on his mental health, and he's not alone. The Gazette cited a 2020 study, which found that three-quarters of Montana farmers and ranchers surveyed believe that an overheating planet is negatively impacting the profitability of their agricultural businesses and driving high levels of stress and anxiety. Yet a tough "pull up your bootstraps" attitude among many people in the agricultural community, paired with a lack of resources, remain hurdles in addressing these mental health concerns, the publication explained. According to the Gazette, Montana leads the nation in per-capita suicide rates. Male farmers and ranchers are particularly vulnerable, with a suicide rate of 49.9 per 100,000. The publication asserted that this is the second-highest among any occupation in the country. Meanwhile, climate threats in the agricultural sector are expected to worsen in the coming years — and it's not just Montanans who will be affected. For instance, one recent study predicted agricultural productivity will drop significantly by the end of the century as farmers face hotter conditions. The researchers say agricultural labor productivity could drop below 40% of full work capacity by the end of the century in countries like Pakistan and India and to 70% in other important regions in Southeast and South Asia, West and Central Africa, and northern South America. Do you worry about the quality of the air inside your home? Yes — often Yes — but only sometimes Only when it's bad outside No — I never do Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. For Montana agriculturalists, it's about more than just weather, however. The state also suffers high rates of alcohol use, poverty, and access to firearms, the Gazette explained. The publication also pointed to vitamin D deficiency caused by long, dark winters and high altitude as risk factors for suicide. Plus, the state's rural status makes it hard for people to access mental health resources. According to the Gazette, Montana received a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to try to tackle its mental health crisis. The state funded a public outreach campaign called Beyond the Weather, which sought to incorporate mental health into everyday agricultural conversation. The grant also funded community-based workshops and free mental health services via telehealth for farmers and ranchers. However, the grant funding has run out, and the state is left to find a more permanent solution. For his part, Love is in therapy and has changed how he grows by focusing on crops that are grasshopper-resistant, fast-growing, cold-hearty, and drought-tolerant, among other adaptations. To that end, scientists are working to create plants that are more climate-resilient so that farmers can be better equipped for unpredictable weather conditions. For instance, researchers have developed a way to create "heat-resistant" plants. Plus, a team in Japan says that soaking plants in ethanol could help protect them from a drought. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
