JUNIPER DIE-OFF

Many people on the Navajo Nation gather firewood to heat their homes in winter. But the pinyon juniper woodlands they rely on are dying due to drought. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny spoke with University of Utah environmental scientist Kate Magargal, whose work raises the alarm about the future of firewood access on the northern Navajo Nation.

Environmentalists announced Tuesday that they're petitioning the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect the pinyon jay under the Endangered Species Act as a way to save the species and the trees.

A joint project between NASA and the National Park Service mapped a massive die-off of juniper trees in northern Arizona. KNAU’s Melissa Sevigny reports, it raises concerns about the long-term loss of wildlife habitat and other ecosystem services.

One of northern and central Arizona’s most iconic tree species is in trouble. The shaggy bark juniper, known for its distinctive outer layers that appear…