The Wild Line

Wild Idea Media
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Natural Sciences

The podcast where land stories are the lead stories. Hosted by Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds, The Wild Line is a quick Friday digest of the week’s top conservation and public lands policy news in plain language so our community stays informed, engaged and ready to act.

  1. 3d ago

    Proposed NHPA Changes Undermine Tribes, Administration Targets Chaco Canyon, Okefenokee Makes Bid for UNESCO Designation

    This week, proposed federal rules would gut tribal consultation and historic-preservation protections under the National Historic Preservation Act, and the Trump Administration opens a comment period on drilling near Chaco Canyon, a UNESCO World Heritage site. We also cover a nearly one-third cut to Canada lynx critical habitat, a Montana Land Board grazing policy widely read as targeting American Prairie's bison herd, and a busy week for the House Natural Resources Committee. Plus: two Forest Service employees kidnapped at gunpoint in Northern California, a flash flood that killed five members of one family in Utah, a Mother Jones investigation into wildfire betting markets, criticism of a Blue Ridge Parkway logging plan, wildfires closing the entire Boundary Waters, and Okefenokee's bid for UNESCO World Heritage status. Full show notes and links at our website, thewildidea.com.

  2. Jul 17

    The Wild Line: Trump Guts Utah Monuments, Admin Rewrites 'Harm,' Red Wolves Recover as Grizzlies and Whales are Targeted

    This week, President Trump signs executive orders cutting Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears National Monuments by nearly 3 million acres combined, over tribal leaders' objections that they were never consulted. Federal agencies rescind the Endangered Species Act's core habitat protection, and Interior proposes returning grizzly bear management to Western states. We also cover a court ruling on grizzly and bull trout habitat in Montana, a House committee vote on whale protections, new funding for endangered species recovery, and rare good news: four litters of wild red wolf pups born in North Carolina. Plus, Ferncliff begins removing a dam to restore an Arkansas stream, and we mark a fourth death tied to Colorado's Gold Mountain Fire. Full show notes and links at our website, thewildidea.com.

  3. Jul 10

    The Wild Line: A New Tracker for Public Land Comment Periods, Eastern States Invest in Wildlife Crossings, and Forest Service Retirees Join Suit to Stop Reorg

    This week, the Bureau of Land Management proposes its first grazing rule overhaul since 1995, covering 155 million acres of Western public land and sharply limiting public participation in permit decisions. A coalition sues to block the Forest Service's largest restructuring in a century, and we track new wildlife crossing funding in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, a wildfire burning into a 50-year-untouched Colorado wilderness, and a new free tool for tracking public lands comment periods. We also remember David Page of the Winter Wildlands Alliance. Full show notes and links at our website, thewildidea.com.

  4. Jul 3

    The Wild Line: A Genomics Pact for Endangered Species, an Oregon Timber Lawsuit, and a Farewell to National Parks Traveler

    This week, the Forest Service opens a comment period on a proposed rule that would narrow public input into how national forests are managed, and the window closes July 31. The Interior Department signs a partnership with "de-extinction" company Colossal Biosciences on species genomics, raising the question of whether the tools complement or replace habitat-based recovery. A new lawsuit tests how far Congress can stretch the Congressional Review Act against land management plans. We also cover a volunteer-built replacement for the shuttered Climate.gov, the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora, and hard news from the fire line in Colorado alongside the closing of National Parks Traveler. Find the full show notes and links at our website, thewildidea.com.

  5. Jun 26

    The Wild Line: Farm Bill Text Features Wilderness Designations, Interior Rolls Back Drilling Safeguards, and NPS Restricts Reporting on Fatalities

    This week on The Wild Line, we're tracking Farm Bill wilderness designations for Virginia, Arkansas, and Illinois; Kevin Lilly's confirmation hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee; Interior's proposed rollback of oil and gas drilling safeguards; a leaked Flathead National Forest memo that would open recommended wilderness to off-road vehicles; an emergency Forest Service salvage timber declaration covering up to 11 million acres with a one-week comment period; NPS restrictions on fatality reporting; and the death of environmental journalist James Bruggers. Find the links and resources mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

  6. Jun 19

    The Wild Line: New Wilderness Directives, Congress Approves $2 Billion for Parks, Former Big Bend Supervisors Fight Border Wall

    This week on The Wild Line, we're tracking new federal directives reshaping wilderness management for climbing anchors and livestock grazing, a bipartisan bill that would restore nearly $2 billion annually for national park maintenance, and a legal battle over a proposed oil road through Utah's most culturally significant canyon corridor. From the Senate's quiet protection of Grand Staircase-Escalante to a federal court's order restoring park displays, this week brought a complicated mix of setbacks and hard-won wins for public lands. Find the links and resources mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

    The Wild Line: New Wilderness Directives, Congress Approves $2 Billion for Parks, Former Big Bend Supervisors Fight Border Wall

  7. Jun 12

    The Wild Line: Trump Targets Recommended Wilderness, Lee Launches Attack on Roadless, Interior Designates New Trails

    This week on The Wild Line, we're tracking a lackluster oil and gas lease sale in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a draft Forest Service memo that could open recommended wilderness to off-road vehicles, Senator Mike Lee's move to nullify the Roadless Rule, and a bipartisan bill to keep public land sales out of budget reconciliation. From Alaska to Appalachia, these stories come down to who decides the future of America's public lands. For more on these stories and the links mentioned, visit our website at thewildidea.com.

    The Wild Line: Trump Targets Recommended Wilderness, Lee Launches Attack on Roadless, Interior Designates New Trails

  8. Jun 5

    The Wild Line: Trump Repeals Motorized Protections, the CRA comes for Utah, Appropriators Slash Funding for National Parks

    This week on The Wild Line, we're tracking the White House's repeal of decades-old off-road vehicle protections on public lands, House appropriations cuts to national parks and the EPA, the collapse of federal conservation program funding for farmers, and the withdrawal of NSF's deep-sea ocean monitoring network. From rolling back environmental safeguards to shrinking the public institutions that protect land and water, these stories trace a consistent direction in 2026. Find the links and resources mentioned today at our website, thewildidea.com.

    The Wild Line: Trump Repeals Motorized Protections, the CRA comes for Utah, Appropriators Slash Funding for National Parks
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About

The podcast where land stories are the lead stories. Hosted by Bill Hodge and Anders Reynolds, The Wild Line is a quick Friday digest of the week’s top conservation and public lands policy news in plain language so our community stays informed, engaged and ready to act.

Information

  • Creator
    Wild Idea Media
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    58
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Wild Idea Media
  • Show Website
    The Wild Line