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Journalists Explore Invasive Grasses and Rangeland Fire in Wyoming
In June, the Intermountain West Joint Venture, in partnership with several organizations, hosted a workshop for journalists in Thermopolis, Wyoming. The event brought over a dozen mass media professionals together who write for newspapers and magazines, make podcasts, and work as videographers and multimedia specialists. Together, they dove into the biggest threat facing sagebrush country: invasive annual grasses and rangeland fire.
The event kicked off at the local fire hall to get a West-wide perspective on this massive conservation challenge. The group heard from some great folks at the University of Wyoming’s Institute for Managing Annual Grasses Invading Natural Ecosystems (IMAGINE) and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service about why perennial native plants are worth their weight in gold and what tools managers have in their toolbox, such as herbicide applications, to treat large-scale landscapes with invasive annual grasses.
The next day, everyone headed into the field to traverse the 2025 Red Canyon Fire scar. This lightning-caused blaze burned across 124,000 acres, with some pretty extreme fire behavior that sent it running in all directions over four chaotic days last summer. The Bureau of Land Management and Farm Service Agency presented about how, before a fire is even out, their staff is already getting the wheels in motion for recovery. In sagebrush landscapes, recovery is slow, expensive, and requires long‑term commitment.
The journalists then met the Wilson Family. Three generations of Wilsons run livestock on this ranch. Each shared their experience with the Red Canyon Fire, its aftermath, and how they are working hard to heal both public and private lands after the fire consumed much of their operation’s grass. Jim Wilson said he’s not in the business of raising cows, but in the business of raising grass that his cows happen to eat. A good portion of his private acres is under a conservation easement, so he proudly said 30 years from now, this ranch will still be a beautiful, wide-open space that benefits everyone.
Wyoming Department of Agriculture and the local weed and pest district staff walked workshop participants through what it takes to reseed native plants and spray herbicide to address invasive grasses on an area like the Red Canyon Fire. So much of the recovery work falls to hyperlocal groups like this. When a big fire like this one happens, they have their work cut out for them. A neat innovation that they are testing out is spraying herbicides with a giant drone. These devices are programmed to spray with super precision and can operate across rough, tight terrain that would be dangerous for someone in a helicopter or plane to fly.
After a long drive through the heart of the fire scar, the group stopped at the south end, where the fire had been halted. At this higher-elevation spot that receives a lot of precipitation, the range was already growing back strongly. Wyoming Game and Fish discussed how invasive annual grasses and fires like this one can impact wildlife, and how everyone needs to be part of the solution to get ahead of this daunting land health threat before it’s too late.
In today’s 24-hour news cycle, slow, detailed, in-person, and accurate journalism is an increasingly challenging craft to practice. But there are still many incredible reporters doing this every day. This event brought just that type of intrepid journalist to a beautiful corner of the West to explore the complex topic of invasive annual grasses and rangeland fire in sagebrush country. This issue is challenging, the solutions daunting, and the cost of failure high. But the speakers at this event who walked reporters through the ins and outs were passionate and knowledgeable. Amazing stories are already hitting outlets around the country.
A few initial articles from workshop participants have already been published. Stay tuned for more in the coming months.
How cheatgrass makes more frequent fires more likely, Wyoming Public Radio
Drought delivers ‘worst case scenario’ for fire scar recovery in Wyoming’s Bighorn Basin, WyoFile
