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In Cortez, residents are expressing concern about the potential environmental impacts of rezoning land next to the Carpenter Natural Area. The parcel of land is owned by Independent Log Company, which recently submitted an application to the city of Cortez to change the zoning of the land from commercial to heavy industrial use. If the land is rezoned, it will mean large industrial equipment and chemicals can be stored on the premises. M. Waldron, a resident of Cortez and a representative for a community group advocating on behalf of the Carpenter area, says concerned Cortez residents can attend the city’s planning and zoning commission meeting on July 18 to make public comments, in addition to the next city council meeting on July 25. And new privacy protections for consumers in Colorado took effect over the weekend.

In Four Corners tribal communities like the Navajo Nation, scammers working for predatory treatment homes are targeting Indigenous people, taking them to pop-up rehabs in Arizona. Victims advocates like Reva Stewart are trying to raise awareness about this issue by holding a walk in downtown Phoenix on Friday, May 5.The rehabs, which are supposed to be regulated by the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, or “Access,” (AHCCCS) target vulnerable individuals in tribal communities, like those who are struggling with substance and alcohol abuse, or who are unsheltered.

Last month, U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper of Colorado wrote a letter requesting a hearing for their Dolores River conservation area bill in the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. The committee has agreed to hold a hearing on the legislation during their next meeting on July 12. The bill would protect 68,000 acres of public lands along the river in southwest Colorado. But now, in addition to the NCA Act, community organizations that advocate on behalf of the Dolores River are discussing the idea of President Joseph Biden designating some areas not covered by the bill as a national monument. And ten new Colorado state laws took effect on Saturday.

The city of Cortez is holding several listening sessions starting on Tuesday as part of the next steps in updating the land use code for the city, which was first adopted 27 years ago. Rachael Marchbanks, the city’s community and economic development director, says that the listening sessions are organized by Logan Simpson, the consultant company for the city. The eventual changes to the land use code will factor in the need for affordable housing in Cortez, she says. And a bill that would make changes to Colorado’s election system was approved by the state Senate last week.

The complexities of The Farm Bill, low water levels in the Mississippi River once again create concern for agricultural barge traffic, the world’s biggest agribusiness corporations record record profits in the face of widespread food poverty and starvation, and U.S. wheat exports are expected to decrease to levels not seen in over 50 years.

Kathleen Curry, a Democrat from Gunnison, announced this month she’s running for Colorado House District 58. Curry previously served three terms as a representative in the State Legislature, changing her party affiliation in 2009 from Democrat to unaffiliated. She later lost reelection. Curry told Colorado Politics that when she left the Democratic Party in 2009 she was frustrated with the party system in general. In June, Curry changed her voter registration back to Democrat and subsequently began a bid for House District 58. If elected, Curry says changing her party affiliation will help her constituents, in part because of the realities of where the legislature is at in terms of party control.

A new seed store and bakery is opening its doors in Cortez for the first time on Saturday. Pueblo Seed & Food Company sells seeds that originated in and are adapted to the desert Southwest, as well as curated seeds from different arid regions all over the world. The company’s farm is located in McElmo Canyon on land protected by a Montezuma Land Conservancy easement, and grows crops like heritage wheat, rye and barley. Nanna Meyer, a baker and co-owner of Pueblo Seed & Food Company, says that she hopes the store will help provide a return to food culture for the residents of Montezuma County after years of isolation during the pandemic. And a new Colorado gun-control law that’s on hold due to a court challenge won’t be going into effect anytime soon.

Colorado’s Division of Water Resources held a meeting in Cortez on Wednesday to seek input from irrigators on the division’s proposed water measurement rules. The rules would mean that farmers in the San Juan and Dolores River basins must begin using measurement methods in order to better record the storage and releases of their water. The Division of Water Resources meeting comes after the Yampa and White basins went through a similar rule-making process to crack down on water users diverting from streams without proper measuring devices. And Congress is considering eliminating federal funding for public media. A House subcommittee recently approved legislation that would zero out funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

On Tuesday, the Cortez City Council will hold a meeting and make a decision about a rezoning application for a parcel of land near Carpenter Natural Area. The parcel to be discussed during Tuesday’s meeting is located off of Highway 491 and is owned by Independent Log Company. The land does not border residential properties but is adjacent to the park. And Indigenous communities are calling for a million acres of land surrounding the Grand Canyon to be declared a national monument. The Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni national monument would leave in place a moratorium on uranium mining in the region that tribes like the Havasupai say is important to protect sacred sites like nearby Red Butte.

Montezuma Land Conservancy, or MLC, announced the conservation of two new parcels of land in Montezuma County on Monday, including one bordering Mesa Verde National Park. The other parcel is located near the Boggy Draw trail system. MLC is a nonprofit trust that works to protect land in southwest Colorado for its wildlife habitat, agricultural potential or public trails. Travis Custer, executive director of MLC, says that the addition of the conserved private land near Mesa Verde to an already existing public lands corridor in the area means more habitat protection for mule deer and certain species of birds listed on the state’s threatened and endangered list. And Colorado state lawmakers from both sides of the aisle and their caucuses have more time to respond to alleged violations of open meeting laws.