Becky Kramer

In a pilot project that has attracted national attention – and some controversy – the Colville National Forest has turned to a timber company to help it restore the forest.

The unusual weather of 2015 is the Northwest’s trial run for future conditions under climate change, climate scientists say.

Heating bills for Avista Utilities’s Washington customers will drop this winter as a result of lower wholesale prices for natural gas.

Flu season is underway in Spokane County. If you haven’t gotten a flu shot yet, it’s time, experts say.

Abandoned campfires started four new wildfires on the Idaho Panhandle National Forests last weekend. One, named the “Lazy Camper Fire,” was reported near Priest Lake. The other three were on the Coeur d’Alene River Ranger District.

Better Health Together has received a $307,000 state grant to continue helping people sign up for health insurance.

The University of Idaho is teaming up with the National Institutes of Health and other universities to rate strategies for combating underage drinking and alcohol abuse among students. About 41 percent of UI students engage in binge drinking, which is similar to national trends, said Sharon Fritz, who oversees the drug and alcohol programs at the university’s Counseling and Testing Center. Binge drinking is five drinks for a male, or four drinks for a female, within a two-hour period.

Some of Washington’s largest polluters will have to cut back greenhouse emissions under new rules state officials are developing. The rules would target about 35 industrial facilities jointly responsible for 60 percent of the heat-trapping gases produced in Washington. The proposed regulation follows Gov. Jay Inslee’s failure to get a cap-and-trade system and carbon tax approved by the Legislature this year.

Sporadic showers and cool temperatures Monday continued to aid crews battling wildfires across the region, but officials cautioned that fire season could linger into October. Much of the forest remains tinder-dry, with conditions conducive for rapid fire spread, said Shoshana Cooper, acting public affairs officer for the Idaho Panhandle National Forests.

The Kootenai Tribe of Idaho is stepping up efforts to save the last wild caribou herd in the Lower 48 states. The tribe has contracted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to write a draft recovery plan for the South Selkirk herd, which migrates through the alpine forests of North Idaho, northeastern Washington and southern British Columbia.