Are you looking for ways to help protect the environment and ecosystems in Boise, Idaho? Volunteering with environmental organizations is a great way to make a difference and contribute to the preservation of the local environment. There are many opportunities available for volunteers to get involved in projects that use soft techniques to restore native riverine habitats. Private landowners, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, and other state and local agencies are all working together to protect and restore riverine habitats on their land. The Idaho Conservation League (ICL) has created a worksheet to help protect people from wildfire smoke and days with poor air quality.
ICL is also involved in ensuring that Intermountain Gas offers fair rates that do not place an excessive burden on customers and people interested in energy efficiency, conservation, and the environmental impacts of the energy system. Other organizations such as United Payette, the Idaho Wildlife Federation, Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, and the Trust for Public Land are also working to protect the environment in Boise. When it comes to Clean Air Act Violations, Idaho officials have been found guilty of breaching federal regulations by issuing an air quality permit for a proposed gold mine in western midwest Idaho. This has been confirmed by the Nez Perce tribe and two conservation groups.
The Club of Idaho must obtain a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers to continue dredging and filling the wetlands. Taxpayers would bear the additional clean-up costs associated with the mine, which continues to release arsenic, zinc, and other heavy metals into groundwater. If you're looking for volunteer opportunities, Boise Parks and Recreation offers a variety of volunteer opportunities that you and your organization can participate in. Trout Unlimited, Idaho Fish and Game, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Idaho Conservation League offer students a one-hour presentation on the fish and other wild animals of Trestle Creek before guiding them to the coast.
John Robison, director of public lands for the Idaho Conservation League, states that much of Idaho's open spaces are “a mosaic of public and private properties, some of which have special easements for public access”. The Idaho Conservation League analyzed state and federal data and research on agricultural pollution in the Eastern Snake Plain aquifer for the third consecutive year. If approved, the company would get 28,000 acres in Valley County and the state would have more profitable forests in North Idaho. We spoke to Darrel Anderson (CEO of Idaho Power) and Ben Otto (of the Idaho Conservation League) about who wins with current policy and what it means for solar energy in Idaho.
ICL also said that there are many opportunities in Idaho to capture methane that would otherwise be released into the environment. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game will review wolf hunting and trapping regulations this year. They may consider expanding wolf capture areas and seasons in the Wood River Valley according to a statement from ICL.
