Author: Dan Elliott, Associated Press
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Hickenlooper, other governors: Ban on land deals could hurt beleaguered sage-grouse
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Colorado’s John Hickenlooper and other western-state governors say a new Trump administration directive threatens to undermine a hard-won compromise aimed at saving a beleaguered bird scattered across their region. The directive, issued in late July, severely limits a type of land swap involving federal property. Critics say that eliminates an important technique for saving habitat…
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Psychiatrist: Much is still hidden in Aurora theater shooter Holmes’ mind
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A psychiatrist who spent hours talking with mass murderer James Holmes says that what led Holmes to open fire in a crowded Colorado movie theater was a one-of-a-kind vortex of his mental illness, his personality and his circumstances – and some other, unknown currents that will probably never be uncovered. “A big part of it…
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Long-delayed, budget-busting VA hospital opens in Aurora
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AURORA – It’s more than $1 billion over budget and five years behind schedule, but an elaborate new veterans hospital is finally opening east of Denver with the promise of state-of-the-art medical care. A ribbon cutting ceremony marked the hospital’s completion Saturday. The $1.7 billion Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center, located adjacent to the…
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Chemical in firefighting foam found in suburban Denver water
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Low levels of potentially harmful chemicals used in firefighting foam and manufacturing were found in drinking water in suburban Denver, health officials said Thursday. Compounds called PFCs were detected in wells used by the South Adams County Water and Sanitation District, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said. The district serves about 50,000…
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US resumes destroying obsolete chemical weapons in Colorado
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DENVER – The U.S. Army resumed destroying obsolete chemical weapons at a Colorado depot after a nine-month shutdown for repairs, officials said Wednesday. The highly automated, $4.5 billion plant at the Pueblo Chemical Depot began a gradual restart this week. It could take 60 days to return to full operation, site manager Greg Mohrman said.…
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Official disputes critic of Rocky Flats nuke plant cleanup
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A U.S. official harshly criticized a Colorado county health officer who questioned the safety of the Rocky Flats site, a former nuclear weapons plant near Denver that was converted into a wildlife refuge, and expressed doubt about whether the government’s assurances about the site could be trusted. The dispute is part of a decades-long public…
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Lawsuit alleges energy company cut safety budget before fatal Colo. blast
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A shareholder lawsuit alleges that energy company Anadarko Petroleum was focused on keeping oil and gas flowing from older wells, not fixing potential safety problems, in the months before a fatal house explosion in Colorado linked to an Anadarko well. The lawsuit cites former company employees as saying Anadarko had slashed its safety budget and…
