A state and federal investigation into the killing of a protected gray wolf that ranged from Yellowstone National Park to Grand Canyon National Park before being shot in Utah has concluded without any charges being filed against the hunter.

Five years after the National Park Service found itself mired in corporate politics over a proposed ban on water sold in disposable bottles, free water dispensers are becoming more and more visible in the parks. At Bryce Canyon National Park, the recent installation of six water-filling stations was driven by Vapur, Inc., a California-based company that sells flexible, refillable "Anti-Bottles."

A lawsuit filed in 2011 has led to an agreement designed to reduce pollution impacting national parks throughout the Southwest. Additionally, the settlement reached with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the owners of the Four Corners Power Plant in New Mexico calls for $8.2 million in penalties and other mitigation costs.

Plague has from time to time been detected at Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. With that in mind, monthly testing for plague is underway at the South Rim and will continue through September.