Utah

Following the Trump administration's opening of Bears Ears National Monument in Utah to commercial activity, prospectors have moved quickly to stake mining claims. Reporting by Grist indicates that claims covering the 1.2 million acres once protected as a monument have been filed by small-scale Utah miners, most of them interested in uranium, raising concerns about the future of the culturally and ecologically sensitive landscape.

Following the Trump administration's decision to open Bears Ears National Monument land in Utah to business activity, prospectors have moved in to stake claims and explore the area. The move follows the 2017 shrinking of the monument, which critics say exposed sacred Native American sites and public lands to mining and commercial exploitation.

Animal welfare advocates say a bird flu outbreak at a mink farm in Utah was left largely unchecked, accusing those responsible of allowing infected animals to 'watch them die' rather than intervening. The outbreak raises concerns about disease control on fur farms and the potential risk of avian influenza spreading or mutating in mammal populations. Critics are calling for stricter oversight of mink farming operations.

A new storm system is bearing down on the Navajo Nation, where roads already damaged by earlier flooding could face further destruction from additional rain. Emergency crews and residents are bracing for worsening conditions across the vast reservation, which spans parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, as recovery work remains underway from recent storm damage.