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Pinecone Project aims to recover Idaho’s forests after Wapiti Fire • Idaho Capital Sun

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Pinecone Project aims to recover Idaho’s forests after Wapiti Fire • Idaho Capital Sun


One organization is aiming to help forest managers recover the trees lost in one of Idaho’s most devastating fires this summer. 

On Nov. 3, the nonprofit Daughters of the American Revolution launched a fundraising campaign to raise money to help restore scorched south and central Idaho forests. 

The Wapiti Fire, which began on July 24 by a lightning strike two miles southwest of Grandjean, spanned about 130,000 acres across the Boise National Forest, Sawtooth National Forest and the Salmon-Challis National Forest. 

Coined the Pinecone Project, the funds raised will be used to hire professional tree climbers for the Sawtooth National Forest who will pick pinecones off trees to harvest mature seeds that will be used to grow and eventually replant trees back into the Sawtooth National Forest.

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As of Monday, the Pinecone Project had raised a total of $11,500, including cash and check donations outside of the PayPal fundraiser, lead organizer Janice Beller said. 

Beller is the Idaho state leader of the nonprofit. Like others in the organization, she is a descendant of someone who participated in the American Revolution. Conservation is important to the organization and important to her as a fifth generation Idahoan, she told the Idaho Capital Sun. 

“Stanley is one of my favorite places in the world, and it has been in my family for years —  literally generations,” she said. “When Stanley burned this summer, it just broke my heart and really had a kind of a profound impact on many members within Daughters of the American Revolution.” 

‘We have a lot of need for seed’: Sawtooth forester says 

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Beller said a member of her leadership team reached out to a Stanley forest ranger to ask how they could help restore the forest. That’s when she learned about the shortage in seeds at Lucky Peak Nursery, located off Highway 21 outside of Boise.

Nelson Mills, the timber and silviculture program manager for the Sawtooth National Forest, said his biggest challenge is that forest staff hasn’t collected enough its seeds to replenish its seed bank at Lucky Peak Nursery.

Forest service staff right now have enough seeds to cover 50 to 80 acres of trees suitable for the Stanley area at its nursery, Mills said. However, that is not nearly enough to recover the forest from the Wapiti Fire.

Pinecones are collected by professional tree climbers who use harnesses and spurred boots to climb trees between 75 and 120 feet tall. The pinecones are then transferred to Lucky Peak Nursery for seed processing. (Courtesy of Bill Josey)

Mills said that wildfires are a natural part of the ecosystem, but catastrophic wildfires like the Wapiti Fire will require artificial tree restoration. Of the 130,000 acres that were burned in the Wapiti Fire, 485 acres have been identified as requiring immediate reforestation need because the seed bed was completely burnt, Mills said. When a more formal assessment is done this winter, forest staff will likely find more acres in need of seedling planting, he said.

In addition to the seed shortage, harvesting pinecones is a complicated, risky and expensive process, Mills said. 

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The main way to collect pinecone seeds is by hiring professional tree climbers for $2,500 a day. Equipped with harnesses and spurred boots, they climb trees between 75 and 120 feet tall to collect pinecones at the perfect ripeness.

Timing is crucial, as ripeness varies by species and elevation, typically occurring between mid-August to mid-September, Mills said. An unripe pinecone won’t have a viable embryo, an overripe pinecone opens and releases its seeds, and pinecones that have fallen on the ground have been exposed to mold — making the seeds unsuitable for use, he said.

The pinecones are then transferred to Lucky Peak Nursery where they are tested, processed, cleaned and sown to make baby lodgepole pines, ponderosa pines and Douglas firs. 

Mills said Project Pinecone creates flexibility for foresters because it is not congressionally appropriated. If it’s not a good pinecone producing year, he said foresters can wait until the next year, or look at other species in a different area. 

“Everybody is stepping up through all phases of this reforestation issue to make a solution and grow forests back specifically in the Stanley basin that was affected by the Wapiti Fire,” Mills said. “It is an amazing collaborative effort, and I am just so thankful that people want to get together and grow a forest ecosystem.”

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Fundraiser to last until spring 2025

Beller said the fundraiser will last until May, when she plans to hold a ceremony to present the funds to the Stanley community and forest officials. She said she is encouraging individuals to donate, as it is tax deductible, and people who donate more than $10 will receive a wooden magnet with the project’s logo. 

The total goal of the project is to raise $15,000, which would pay for six days of pinecone picking. 

The fundraiser is partnering with Boise Cascade, which committed to a day’s worth of pinecone picking to the project. 

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“Boise Cascade’s roots run deep in the state of Idaho, and we are honored to contribute to this incredible project to help restore some of Idaho’s most cherished forest lands that were burned during the brutal fire season of summer 2024,” Boise Cascade Vice President of Human Resources and contributions committee chair Angella Broesch, told the Sun. “As one of the largest producers of wood products in North America and a leading wholesale distributor of building products in the U.S., our company is committed to contributing to responsible forestry practices and protecting our environment.”

Having surpassed the halfway point of its goal, Beller said the successful donations show how much people from Idaho and outside of Idaho care about the Stanley area.

“We’ve heard so many people say that it’s truly the heart of Idaho, and it means a great deal to them and their families,” Beller said. “So to see everybody come together and contribute even just a little to bring it back is very humbling.”

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Idaho Lottery results: See winning numbers for Pick 3, Pick 4 on April 19, 2026

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The results are in for the Idaho Lottery’s draw games on Sunday, April 19, 2026.

Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on April 19.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 19 drawing

Day: 9-5-1

Night: 8-0-6

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Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 19 drawing

Day: 2-7-0-3

Night: 4-3-3-3

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Idaho Cash numbers from April 19 drawing

15-28-31-38-45

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Check Idaho Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 19 drawing

32-42-52-53-55, Bonus: 05

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

When are the Idaho Lottery drawings held ?

  • Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
  • Pick 3: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
  • Pick 4: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
  • Lucky For Life: 8:35 p.m. MT Monday and Thursday.
  • Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • 5 Star Draw: 8 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
  • Idaho Cash: 8 p.m. MT daily.
  • Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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‘Unrelenting’: Statehouse reporters recap 2026 legislative session in Idaho Falls – East Idaho News

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‘Unrelenting’: Statehouse reporters recap 2026 legislative session in Idaho Falls – East Idaho News


IDAHO FALLS — Two prominent Idaho Statehouse reporters say this past legislative session was “unrelenting,” chaotic, largely driven by budget cuts, and they see the Legislature getting more powerful.

Kevin Richert and Clark Corbin recapped this past legislative session at a forum on the ISU Idaho Falls Campus on Thursday.

Richert is a senior reporter at Idaho Education News, with more than 30 years of experience covering education policy and politics. Corbin is a senior reporter at the Idaho Capital Sun who has covered every Idaho legislative session, gavel to gavel, since 2011.

The event was hosted by the City Club of Idaho Falls, which “exists to sponsor and promote civil dialogue and discourse on all matters of public interest” and strives to be “nonpartisan and nonsectarian,” according to its website.

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Budget cuts

Both Richert and Corbin said this session was driven by budget cuts. Corbin said this was due to a lack of revenue stemming from past income tax and the adoption of new federal tax cuts.

“Cuts for almost every state agency and state department dominated the legislative session,” Corbin said. “We’re talking about 4% budget cuts for most state agencies and departments in the current fiscal year, and we’re talking about an additional 5% budget cuts for almost all state agencies and departments starting next year — fiscal year ’27 — and continuing permanently.”

RELATED | Gov. Little signs so-called ‘crappy bill’ to cut state budget

Richert said he thought higher education was taking the brunt of budget cuts. “It’s not a question of whether tuition fees are going to go up at the universities; it’s a question of how much,” he said.

When asked what the future would hold, Corbin said the budget cuts aren’t likely to go away, and their effects will be felt over time.

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“There could always be a change of leadership in the House, but they do expect the budget crunch to continue in the next year’s legislative session,” Corbin said.

‘Radiator capping’

Richert said he has one word to describe this year’s legislative session: “unrelenting.”

One thing that made it feel that way was that some bills were recycled over and over, he said. For example, Richert said the Legislature saw five different versions of a bill that proposed cuts to the Idaho Digital Learning Alliance.

“We had multiple bills that came from the dead,” he said.

The journalists said this is partly due to a tactic called “radiator capping.” The term means to replace the entire car — the bill’s text, in political terms — while only keeping the radiator cap: the bill number. By rewriting a bill on the House or Senate floor while maintaining its number, failed bills can effectively bypass the committee process.

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“Those are the changes they tried to make on immigration bills, on union bills this year,” Corbin said. “It made it extremely difficult for the public to have any idea what was going on, to have any opportunity to participate in the legislative process and share their opinions.

A more powerful, more chaotic Legislature

Richert said Idaho’s annual legislative sessions are trending longer, commonly going into the early part of April, and producing a record number of bills.

“There are rumblings that this Legislature, as a body, is wanting to expand its reach over more and have even more power over the other branches of government to the point of — are we trending towards more of a full-time professional legislature?” Richert said. “We’re a long way from there.”

“The legislative branch of government, particularly the Idaho House of Representatives, is the most powerful I’ve seen it in 16 years of covering state government,” Corbin said.

He added that this year’s legislative session was unlike any he’s experienced.

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“The overall temperature in the building was bad,” Corbin said. “It was divisive. It was chaotic. People were not hiding their feelings of disgust for each other. These traditional ideas of decorum and respect very much fell by the wayside.”

Richert said Gov. Brad Little vetoed very few bills that came across his desk, and the ones he did weren’t high-profile.

RELATED | Idaho Gov. Brad Little issues 5 vetoes. Here are the bills affected

“I think the governor behaved like he was very concerned about the supermajority-controlled Legislature, and I think that that Legislature, in turn, asserted itself and took control of the agenda this year,” Corbin said.

Are legislators representing Idaho?

Corbin said some bills this year also focused on the LGBTQ+ community, such as a bathroom restriction for transgender individuals, and a bill that banned the City of Boise from waving a Pride flag.

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RELATED | Idaho governor signs bill to criminalize trans people using bathrooms that align with their identity

RELATED | Boise removes LGBTQ+ pride flag as Idaho governor signs bill to fine city for its display

When asked if these were what Idahoans wanted, Corbin said it doesn’t necessarily appear so to him, based on his review of Boise State University’s annual public policy survey.

“For years and years, I’ve heard concerns about affordability of housing, access to housing, managing the growth of the state of Idaho, having quality public schools available for our young people — that also generates a workforce pipeline for some of our businesses,” Corbin said. “I’ve heard about paying for wildfires. I’ve heard about having good roads, supporting access to public lands, public recreation, those are the concerns I hear from Idahoans.”

“But the Legislature spent a significant amount of time over the last two, three, four years placing additional restrictions on LGBTQ communities, placing restrictions on what teachers can and cannot teach in their classrooms, what school boards can and cannot do,” Corbin continued. “They talked about requiring a moment of silence every day to begin the public school day, where children could pray or read the Bible.”

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RELATED | Gov. Brad Little signs public school ‘moment of silence’ bill into law

Corbin said it may be his own opinion, but perhaps it is easier to “make a bunch of noise about what’s going wrong and (distract) people with social issues” rather than focus on harder issues that Idaho faces.

“I think what you saw on the policy space is a reflection of the fact that you had legislators thinking about reelection, and legislators with time on their hands — and that’s not always a good combination,” Richert said.

Accountability

When asked how people can keep legislators accountable, Corbin said it can be done by following the state Legislature through trusted news sources, going to community events and voting.

“This is a great year to practice accountability, because all 105 state legislators and all statewide elected officials are up for election this year,” he said.

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Idaho Lottery results: See winning numbers for Powerball, Pick 3 on April 18, 2026

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The results are in for the Idaho Lottery’s draw games on Saturday, April 18, 2026.

Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on April 18.

Winning Powerball numbers from April 18 drawing

24-25-39-46-61, Powerball: 01, Power Play: 5

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

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Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 18 drawing

Day: 9-5-1

Night: 0-2-4

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 18 drawing

Day: 4-6-0-4

Night: 9-9-8-2

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Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lotto America numbers from April 18 drawing

18-21-22-32-42, Star Ball: 10, ASB: 03

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Idaho Cash numbers from April 18 drawing

08-19-22-31-44

Check Idaho Cash payouts and previous drawings here.

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Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 18 drawing

17-19-47-48-55, Bonus: 04

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

When are the Idaho Lottery drawings held ?

  • Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
  • Pick 3: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
  • Pick 4: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
  • Lucky For Life: 8:35 p.m. MT Monday and Thursday.
  • Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • 5 Star Draw: 8 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
  • Idaho Cash: 8 p.m. MT daily.
  • Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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