EJJ

Energy Reporter

Emma Jane Jackson

Emma Jane Jackson joined Cowboy State Daily as an energy reporter in September 2026. She’s previously written for the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Billings Gazette and the Daily Iowan. In 2022, she created a podcast called “Out of Sight: Missing and Murdered” about Selena Not Afraid, a young woman who was found deceased near a rest stop in Hardin, Montana. She graduated from Triton College in River Grove, Illinois, in 2018.

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Latest from Emma Jane Jackson

Two loose dogs take off after chasing horses at Kaylee Little’s horse breeding business in Gillette on Tuesday night. Little said she recognized the pair from photos shared by another local owner whose horse was attacked earlier this month.

'They Don't Quit': More Gillette Livestock Mauled And Pony Killed By Roaming Dogs

After a Gillette veterinarian reported an attack on her horse, other livestock owners say roaming dogs are a growing threat across the county. One encounter proved fatal. “He didn't deserve to suffer like he did,” one owner said of her pony Woodrow.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 29, 2026

UFO Experts Tell Kemmerer Residents to Keep Their Eyes on the Skies Above Natrium

Robert Hastings, a world-renowned UFO researcher and author says whatever has watched nuclear sites for decades will take notice of Wyoming’s, too. “There are many cases where these objects have maneuvered around civilian nuclear-power plants,” he said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 29, 2026

Prometheus Abruptly Drops Natrona Data Center Plan, Eyes New Wyoming Locations

Prometheus Hyperscale has abandoned plans for a massive data center spanning Natrona and Converse counties, blindsiding officials even as its multibillion-dollar southwest Wyoming project moves ahead. "That was kind of a shock," a commissioner said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 28, 2026

Retired Kemmerer miner Dick Borino described the town's coal mine as "one of the better places to work."

Kemmerer Residents Hope For A ‘Hail Mary’ To Save Coal Mine From Closure

As Kemmerer’s coal mine faces a 2029 shutdown and a looming hit to local tax revenues, community leaders are holding out hope for a late-stage turnaround. “We’ve still got lots of good coal out there,” the mayor says. A retired miner isn't so sure.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 27, 2026

Laramie County sign and turbines 9 16 26

Massive 650-Megawatt Laramie Wind Project Gets State OK

Wyoming regulators have officially signed off on the 650-megawatt Laramie Range Wind Project near Cheyenne. The developer still faces 26 strict new conditions, including a 2.5-mile residential setback, and is reworking its plan for the 139-turbine site.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 27, 2026

Bomgaars won’t sell firearms to Colorado residents at the national chain’s Wyoming stores because of the clash in state regulations. On the other hand, “Colorado is the gift that keeps on giving” to smaller businesses, said a Cheyenne gun shop owner.

Bomgaars Won’t Sell Firearms To Coloradans At Its Wyoming Stores

Bomgaars won’t sell firearms to Colorado residents at the national chain’s Wyoming stores because of a clash in state regulations. On the other hand, “Colorado is the gift that keeps on giving” to smaller businesses, said a Cheyenne gun shop owner.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 26, 2026

Under Pentagon’s Doomsday Scenario, F.E. Warren Can Still Fire Missiles

F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne can still fire its missile if disconnected from civilian utilities as outlined in the Pentagon’s new doomsday mandate. "This is how prudent military people think," said former base commander Tucker Fagan.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 26, 2026

Sara Yeaman Bighorns old cabin 2 10 25 26

How A Tragic Loss Led A Wyoming Woman To Uncover Bighorn Gold Rush Ruins

Layering 1898 maps over satellite images, Sara Yeaman hikes deep into Wyoming’s wilderness to find the ruins of forgotten boomtowns. Along the way, she found healing in the high country after a tragedy at home. “They saved me," she says of the Bighorns.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 25, 2026

Gary Medicine Cloud, a hunter from the Wind River Reservation, recounted his 2003 encounter with a silent, matte-black triangular object in the St. Lawrence area of the Wind River Range. Background image is a digital recreation based on recently declassified federal UAP incident reports illustrates a matte-black triangular craft observed executing low-altitude maneuvers over Western military airspace.

UFO Files Released Friday Match Wyoming Hunter’s Silent Black Triangle Encounter

Newly declassified federal UFO files released Friday detail silent black triangles matching a Wyoming hunter’s encounter. These dark craft are frequently described by witnesses as "floating fertility clinics," a professor and UFO expert says.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 23, 2026

Long rail cars haul coal out of the Powder River Basin in Wyoming.

Could Data Centers Save Wyoming Coal? Peabody Eyes 'Holy Grail' Strategy

Facing steep production drops, Peabody Energy is exploring plans to build mine-mouth power plants for energy-hungry data centers in the Powder River Basin. “It would be one of these holy grail situations in Wyoming,” one county commissioner says.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 23, 2026

Diya, a stray dog, sits at the Split Rock Rest Area near Jeffrey City, where she spent over a month outsmarting rescue traps before being walked 90 miles to safety.

How The Uncatchable Wyoming Rest Area Dog Was Secretly Walked 90 Miles Home To Safety

A Lander man was convinced traditional traps would never capture the celebrity stray dog Diya at Split Rock Rest Area near Jeffrey City, so he secretly coaxed her to walk 90 miles to his home. “She followed me and my dog every step of the way,” the hiker said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 23, 2026

Campbell County Moves $500 Million Nuclear Fuel Facility Closer To Reality

Campbell County approved a one-year access agreement Wednesday letting BWXT conduct ground, water and wildlife studies at Pronghorn Industrial Park for a planned $500 million nuclear fuel manufacturing facility. The 1 million square foot plant could cover the site's entire 247 acres.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 21, 2026

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Cheyenne Eyed For First World-Scale Nitrogen Fertilizer Plant In The Region

American Fertilizer is pitching a massive "world-scale" nitrogen fertilizer plant outside of Cheyenne. Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins calls the prospect "an exciting opportunity." “From what they told me, it’s a multi-billion-dollar facility," he said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 21, 2026

Gillette Targeted For Massive $575 Million Uranium Processing Plant

A Canadian uranium processing company is eyeing Gillette for a massive $575 million facility with the goal of helping to transform northeastern Wyoming into a nuclear manufacturing center. “These people are playing with fire," one skeptic said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 21, 2026

People search the Hobbs family farm in Franklin, Idaho, for 1,500 mink after the animals were released Saturday.

Activists Release 1,500 Mink From Idaho Farm, Only To Die Of Heat Or Get Run Over

Activists called the raid on an Idaho mink farm “liberation” for the 1,500 minks they released. But they can’t take care of themselves, said the farm’s owner, leaving many to die of heat, stress or get run over. “This is an unethical thing to do,” he said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 20, 2026

A drone shot shows the overturned cattle trailer and emergency crews at First Avenue North and Main Street in Billings on Friday.

When A Trailer With 84 Cows Flipped In Billings, Wyoming Grad Calls In The Cowboys

When a trailer flipped carrying 84 head of cattle right outside a massive stock show and rodeo in Billings on Saturday, University of Wyoming grad Michaela Suter did what any rodeo person would do. She called in the cowboys to wrangle the loose herd.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 19, 2026

Deputies put down a mountain lion roaming a neighborhood northeast of Cheyenne. Nearby horse owners say the threat to foals and livestock was real, and the choice to euthanize was valid. “It would have been back,” one neighbor says.

Deputies Euthanize One Of Two Mountain Lions In Neighborhood North Of Cheyenne

Deputies put down one of two mountain lions roaming a neighborhood northeast of Cheyenne on Saturday. Nearby horse owners say the threat to foals was real, and the choice to euthanize was necessary. “It would have come back,” one resident said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 19, 2026

TerraPower founder Bill Gates, second from left, with Gov. Mark Gordon at the TerraPower nuclear power plant site near Kemmerer on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026.

TerraPower CEO Says Kemmerer Nuclear Plant Will Attract Data Centers

TerraPower’s CEO says the company’s first-of-its-kind advanced nuclear power plant being built near Kemmerer will attract data centers. The CEO, along with billionaire founder Bill Gates, was in Wyoming on Thursday to see the project's progress.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 16, 2026

Weeklong Search For Star Valley Fugitive Amps Up With Drones, Volunteers

After nearly a week of looking for a Star Valley fugitive, the Lincoln County Sheriff is escalating efforts with drones and crews of volunteers to find Jerimiah Jensen. “He’s missing for a reason. He’s eluding law enforcement,” the sheriff has said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 16, 2026

Selah, a 5-year-old horse owned by Luke and Clare Sheehan, is pictured on Oct. 14 after dogs attacked her in Gillette.

Roving Dogs In Gillette Attack Horse, Police Say It’s ‘Being Dealt With’

Gillette veterinarian Clare Sheehan had to treat her 5-year-old horse Selah at home after roving dogs attacked it Wednesday. Selah suffered bite wounds to the face, chest and front legs. The incident is "being dealt with," police said.

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 15, 2026

An aerial view of the Meta data center being built in south Cheyenne.

'Bone Just Dangling': OSHA Investigates Gruesome Injury At Meta’s Cheyenne Data Center

OSHA confirmed Thursday it investigated a gruesome workplace injury at Meta’s Cheyenne data center project last week. A worker said a colleague of his was run over by a lift twice. “The bone was sticking up the side of the leg; it was just dangling there."

Emma Jane JacksonOctober 15, 2026

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