A congresswoman from California has called on the Interior Department's Office of Inspector General to look into "improper and potentially illegal" actions by National Park Service employees involved in development of a dog management plan at Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

In a move celebrated by groups ranging from the Blackfoot Natino and Montana Hunters and Anglers to the National Parks Conservation Association and U.S. Sen. Jon Testor, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management has canceled the final two oil and gas leases in the Badger-Two Medicine area within the Lewis and Clark National Forest in northwest Montana. The two lease cancellations address outstanding concerns about the potential for oil and gas development in this culturally and ecologically important area.

They were strangers to each other, collected by common calamity, disfigured, mortally sick, banished without sin from home and friends, Robert Louis Stevenson wrote about the Kalaupapa Leper Colony in 1889.

The new year is a time to reflect on events and photos from the previous year. How did you fare photographically for 2016? Do you have any particular favorite images? Why are they your favorites? After reviewing 2016, photographer Rebecca Latson presents her favorite images captured during that year with an explanation of why she likes each one, including camera settings, accessories used, and reasons for photographing the image.