What is the current environmental issue in wyoming?

Answer 1

Wyoming, a western state located north of Colorado and south of Montana on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains, faces several important environmental issues. Those include climate change impacts, endangered species, air pollution, and fracking.

Climate Change Impacts - Due to climate change, temperatures have increased across much of Wyoming. As a result, mountain pine beetles and other insects that normally would be killed off in winter have been surviving. This is a problem because these beetles feed on trees like lodgepole and Ponderosa pines and Douglas fir. As the beetles live longer and as their populations increase, they're killing more and more trees in Wyoming's forests. As the forests become weakened, they become more susceptible to fire. Thousands of acres of forests are being lost in Wyoming as a result.

Endangered Species - As forests are lost, so are the species that depend upon them for habitat, food, and protection from predators. For example, pine squirrel populations depend on pine seeds to survive the winter. But as pine beetles kill of the trees, the number of pine seeds diminishes, inevitably impacting pine squirrel populations. Animals like the Wyoming toad, a very rare amphibian, are being threatened by hotter temperatures, runoff of toxic agricultural chemicals from farms and ranches, and habitat destruction. The sage grouse, a beautiful bird that inhabits hundreds of thousands of acres of land, has been severely impacted by gas well sites, pipelines and other industrial facilities.

Fracking and other mineral development - Hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," is the extraction of natural gas that is buried deep underground. Fracking requires enormous amounts of water to remove the gas once the rock it is in is pulverized; often, that waste water ends up contaminating the ground water communities tap for drinking water. In addition, coal mining and oil drilling in the state pollute the air and lead to oil spills and waste from mining operations. Mining and fracking also impact wildlife that live in Wyoming. Trucking operations disrupt migration routes and roads and pipeline interfere with animal habitats.

Air Pollution - Production of natural gas has increased smog in Wyoming, threatening human health, especially for children, the elderly, and anyone with a compromised immune system.