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U.S. Sen. John Barrasso, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, was joined by U.S. Sen. Cynthia Lummis reintroduced legislation on April 27, that would resolve the management status of thousands of acres of federal public lands located in seven counties in Wyoming.

According to a brief from the office of Sen. Lummis, the bill is the direct result of a collaborative process started under the Wyoming Public Lands Initiative (WPLI). The WPLI was created by the Wyoming County Commissioners Association (WCCA) in 2015 to seek locally driven solutions on the future of federal public lands that have been in management limbo for more than 30 years.

While appearing on Sheridan Medias Public Pulse program, Johnson County Commission Chair and WCCA President Bill Novotny explained the bill intends to return management of these public lands to local control and called on U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman to lend support in the House.

To learn more and view maps of the locations in question, click here.

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Novotny: WPLI would bring local control of public lands stuck in ... - Sheridan Media

FILE: Linsey Jones, a medical assistant working at a drive-up coronavirus testing clinic, wears an N95 mask.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that COVID-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency.

With less cases each day, pretty much everyone has returned to normalcy. Chief of Infectious Disease with UTHealth Houston and Memorial Herman Dr. Luis Ostrosky said that positive cases do still show up, though the number of daily COVID-19 patients have dwindled down for awhile now.

"It has been down dramatically. In general I can tell you we still have about between 80-120 patients with a positive test system wise on a daily basis," Ostrosky said.

Although the numbers are down, Ostrosky said that we should always be prepared just in case.

"We need to watch out for new variants, new peaks in the future and if we do have one thats of concern, we need to be ready to pivot back to our known preventive measures," Ostrosky said.

With the decline in cases the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that after May 11, authorizations to collect certain public health data will expire.

Ostrosky said that the announcement from WHO did not surprise him, after the decline in cases.

"I think the writing was on the walls," he said. "This signals, the transition from a pandemic to an endemic, we just to have to learn to how to deal with it."

Ostrosky said the pandemic was a life-changing event for him.

"We were preparing for decades for a pandemic like this, looking back we fully underestimated how much it would last and impact our society, Ostrosky said.

Ostrosky said that the initial hit was in waves.

"We went through several waves through our hospital system," he said. "In the worst of it, almost 20% of our beds were taken over by COVID-19 patients who were really sick."

During quarantine, Ostrosky said that him and his colleagues tried the best they could to prepare.

"We were ready to switch to pandemic mode, but again it really was life changing for all of us," Ostrosky said.

Ostrosky also said that times did get harder as hospital members were getting sick causing a stretch in help all throughout the hospital.

"Staff are getting sick too, and were having to cover all the services, were having to flex time, flex people," Ostrosky said.

To combat this Ostrosky said that they created a kept up a command module for over two years.

"This was really almost a military operation to keep the hospitals working and people safe," he said.

Ostrosky said that he learned a lot from the pandemic and praised the many health professions that stepped-up and helped.

"One of the things that really struck me is the bravery of health care professionals," Ostrosky said. "We had people suiting up and going into those rooms, and taking care of those people in desperate need of help."

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As WHO ends COVID-19 global emergency, Houston expert says virus is still around but numbers dramatically down - Houston Public Media

The Greens have won their first outright majority on a UK council in what it hopes cements a coming of age moment as a mainstream party.

Mid Suffolk fell from a minority Conservative administration to sole control of the Greens as they made inroads elsewhere during the local election results on Friday.

The left-wing environmentalists have controlled local authorities in minority and coalition administrations before, but this is the first time they will have outright control.

With eight more results to be declared, the Greens victory was declared when they won 18 of the East Anglia councils 34 seats.

Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay told the PA news agency: For the first time anywhere outside Australia weve seen the Greens take the majority control of a council.

Its enormous because what weve seen over the last four sets of election since 2019 is the Green party really coming of age as a mainstream party in this country.

Mr Ramsay said the Greens have been part of around 20 local administrations in the past but capturing overall control is a really significant moment that paves the way for success at the general election.

He said his party is picking votes from both Labour and the Conservatives across rural and urban areas.

Caroline Lucas has been the partys sole MP, but Mr Ramsay hopes to enter the Commons in the new Waveney Valley constituency, which includes much of Mid Suffolk.

Carla Denyer, who shares the Green leadership, plans to run in Bristol Central, where she will change strong Labour support.

But doing so would edge out another left-wing candidate, putting at risk Sir Keir Starmers chances of winning a general election.

Mr Ramsay said: Getting more greens elected will hold other parties feet to the fire and will raise the issues that need to be challenged in terms of the climate emergency but also cost of living and growing inequality.

The Greens were also behind the Conservatives losing overall control of East Hertfordshire, where no party won a majority. Seventeen Green candidates won spots on the council on Thursdays votes.

In Mid Suffolk, Mr Ramsay vowed to be responsive to local concerns and focus on housing which is currently far too expensive for local people and outside their reach.

He said the Green-run council plans to advocate for more social housing and being tougher with developers on affordable housing.

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Greens win sole control of a UK council for the first time - Kalkine Media

Editors note: Images available via Hightail.

The AFP has helped enhance the law enforcement capabilities of Samoa Police with the opening of a new police training facility and the launch of a first-of-its-kind First Responders Handbook.

The new training centre made possible with funding support from the AFP-led Samoa Australia Police Partnership (SAPP) will provide Samoa Police with the necessary facilities and resources to learn and develop their skills.

It will broaden the scope of training on offer and includes a room specifically for the Cyber Safety Pasifika program, an AFP-led program aimed at increasing cyber safety awareness and education across the Pacific.

Samoa Police recruits will also be trained at the facility, equipping the next generation of police officers with the skills and knowledge they need to serve their communities effectively.

The new First Responders Handbook offers a comprehensive guide to first response and procedures. It will serve as a tool for officers who attend crime scenes, enabling them to secure and control the scene, assess medical needs, determine facts and circumstances and ensure potential evidence is not tainted or compromised.

Detective Superintendent and Senior Officer SAPP Daniel Evans said the AFP was dedicated to collaborating with Samoa Police to enhance its policing capability.

The AFP, through the SAPP initiative, works closely to build the capability and capacity of Samoa Police to ensure effective law enforcement and community safety, Detective Superintendent Evans said.

The opening of the Samoa Police training facility is a significant milestone in this ongoing effort.

Over the past five years, the AFP has invested over WST $3.5 million (AUD $1.84 million) in Samoa Police training which includes equipment, training development and delivery.

We will continue to fund training through regional mechanisms including the Pacific Faculty of Policing, Pacific Police Development Program, Cyber Safety Pasifika and the Pacific Transnational Crime Network, Detective Superintendent Evans said.

Honourable Minister of Police, Faualo Harry Schuster said the new facility and handbook marked another important milestone in Samoa's law enforcement efforts.

"This training facility will provide our officers with space to learn and develop the skills they need to carry out their duties effectively, Minister Schuster said.

The First Responders Handbook is a valuable resource that will help our officers respond to incidents in a professional and systematic way, ensuring the safety of the public and the preservation of evidence.

"The SAPP is a vital partnership that has contributed significantly to the development of our police force over the years. We appreciate the continued support of the AFP and Australia Government in enhancing the capabilities of our police force and improving the safety and security of our communities."

Media enquiries:AFP Media: (02) 5126 9297

Connect with us:Follow our Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube pages to learn more about what the AFP does to keep Australia safe.

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New training facility and First Responders Handbook to boost ... - Australian Federal Police

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C.

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. Officials are urging residents and others to evacuate the areas surrounding two out-of-control wildfires in northeastern British Columbia near the Alberta border, in response to reports that some have stayed behind or ventured toward the blazes.

The Peace River Regional District said it has received reports that some residents living in areas under an evacuation order due to the Boundary Lake and Red Creek wildfires have "decided to stay behind" for unspecified reasons.

District board chair Leonard Hiebert said there has also been reports of others driving into the wildfire area, located about 1,300 kilometres northeast of Vancouver.

"This is impeding the response and putting their lives and the lives of firefighters at risk," Hiebert said. " I personally don't know why they are driving in there, and I don't know how many are."

In a statement issued Saturday, the district said that strong winds were "expected to contribute to the continued growth" of both the Boundary Lake and Red Creek wildfires for the next 24 to 48 hours.

On Sunday, the Boundary Lake wildfire near Goodlow, B.C., grew from 1,900 to 3,000 hectares, while the Red Creek blaze encompassed 1,550 hectares near Fort St. John, B.C.

The fires, which were discovered Friday, have placed 164 properties in total 103 for Boundary Lake, 61 for Red Creek under mandatory evacuation order. Another 397 properties are on alert for evacuation on short-notice, district officials said.

The regional district's area that covers both Boundary Lake and Red Creek has declared a state of local emergency to allow it to respond quicker to the wildfires.

Hiebert said it is understandable that residents in the fire area may be reluctant to leave because they also raise livestock on their properties. Those who evacuate their properties usually have to leave livestock behind, he said.

The regional district, Hiebert said, is working on creating permits to facilitate emergency personnel re-entry into the fire zone to check on the welfare of the animals but only if the wildfire situation allows.

"At this time, it is not safe to do so," he said.

Those who decide to stay behind despite the evacuation order, Hiebert said, must be 19 or older and must remain on their properties.

Natural Resources Canada's fire danger map for western Canada improved significantly on Sunday, with Alberta no longer covered almost entirely under the extreme danger zone as it was on Saturday.

A third wildfire 700 kilometres to the south of the Peace River region blazes, at Teare Creek, also continued to burn on Sunday.

The BC Wildfire Service, however, said the blaze was under control and unlikely to spread, while the evacuation orders and alerts for residents near the village of McBride have been rescinded.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 7, 2023.

Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press

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Out-of-control wildfires in northeastern B.C. expected to worsen due ... - Times Colonist