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Colorado Edition: Water, Inside And Out

COURTESY DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT
The Yampa River flows through northwest Colorado to join the Green River near the Colorado-Utah border.

Today on Colorado Edition: we'll discuss a recent string of severe respiratory illness and their potential link to e-cigarette use. Plus, the latest on court ruling in the state of Idaho regarding a transgender inmate's confirmation surgery, and a trip to the last relatively wild river in the state.

News Of The Day:

  • Oil Companies Merge - Two Colorado oil and gas companies, PDC Energy and SRC Energy, are merging. The new company will be the second-largest producer of oil and gas in Colorado, after Occidental Petroleum. Under the PDC name, the company will oversee drilling on more than 180,000 acres in Weld County.   
     
  • National Parks Repairs Poll - A bipartisan poll from the Pew Charitable Trusts shows 82% of Americans want Congress to pass legislation to invest in overdue repairs at national parks. That's up from 76% last November. Most of them said they would like Congress to dedicate more money, up to $6.5 billion over five years, to fix national parks — tasks like upgrading trails and visitor centers, and maintaining historic structures. The project director of the “Restore America's Parks” campaign says the longer repairs are postponed, the more serious and expensive they become. Companion bills in the House and Senate would put money toward fixing those problems. They’re co-sponsored by lawmakers from every state in the Mountain West except Wyoming. A bipartisan Pew polling team surveyed 700 Americans across the country by phone.
     
  • Steamboat Springs Property Tax Vote - The Steamboat Springs City Council is scheduled to vote tomorrow on whether to ask residents to approve a new property tax this November. The new revenue would fund expansion of the city’s fire and emergency medical services department. If passed, it would be the first time the city has collected property taxes in 40 years.  

Vaping-Related Illnesses In Colorado

RUSLAN ALEKSO / PEXELS

Vaping is on the rise and a growing number of medical experts are concerned about a recent string of severe respiratory illness across the country, including a handful in Colorado.

Dr. Robin Deterding, a pediatric pulmonologist and medical director of the Breathing Institute at Children's Hospital Colorado,  joined us to talk about the state of vaping in Colorado and the potential link to these lung illnesses.

Idaho Judge Orders First Court-Appointed Sex Assignment Surgery

Credit HEATH DRUZIN / BOISE STATE PUBLIC RADIO
A federal court has ordered that the state of Idaho pay for gender confirmation surgery for Adree Edmo, a transgender inmate incarcerated at the Idaho State Correctional Institution (above).

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the state of Idaho must provide sex reassignment surgery, also known as gender confirmation surgery, to a transgender inmate, Adree Edmo. She's now slated to be the first transgender woman in the nation to receive the surgery through court order. From the Mountain West News Bureau, Amanda Peacher tells us more.

Colorado Leads The Nation In Four-Day School Weeks

Credit Peter Hellberg / Wikimedia Commons
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Wikimedia Commons

You may be familiar with the idea of a four-day school week. Maybe a school in your district has that schedule, or is thinking about implementing it. Jennifer Brown from The Colorado Sun joins us to talk about how the four-day school week looks across the state.

The Last Wild River In Colorado

Credit DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT
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DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT
The Yampa River flows through northwest Colorado to join the Green River near the Colorado-Utah border.

There aren't many wild rivers left in Colorado. In fact, there may only be one. KUNC's Luke Runyon takes us the relatively free-flowing Yampa River in northwestern Colorado. 

Colorado Edition is made possible with support from our KUNC members. Thank you!

Our theme music was composed by Colorado musicians Briana Harris and Johnny Burroughs. Other music this week by Blue Dot Sessions:

  • "Greylock" by Skittle
  • "Leave the TV On" by Lemuel
  • "Highway 430" by Truck Stop
  • "Longtime Rye" by Sunday at Slims

Colorado Edition is hosted by Erin O'Toole (@ErinOtoole1) and Henry Zimmerman (@HWZimmerman), and produced by Lily Tyson. The web was edited by digital editor Jackie Hai. News director Catherine Welch and managing editor Brian Larson contributed to this episode.

KUNC's Colorado Edition is a daily news magazine taking an in-depth look at the issues and culture of Northern Colorado. It's available on our website, as well as on iTunesGoogle PlayStitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can hear the show on KUNC's air, beginning Sept. 2, Monday through Thursday at 6:30 p.m.

 

Stories written by KUNC newsroom staff.