Go Fly a Kite
The mountains of Emery County bring a challenge to more than its residents as people from across the United States begin to migrate to the area to take part in some of the extreme sporting opportunities available here. One of the newest extreme sport adventures is Snow kiting and Skyline Ridge up Huntington Canyon is the premier U.S. Snow kiting playground.
On Dec. 28 cars lined the highway leading to Skyline Ridge with people enjoying the winter sports that these mountains offer. Mark Barry of Las Vegas, says he is a newbie to the sport of snow kiting and if you wonder why someone from Las Vegas would be doing snow kiting in the freezing temperatures of the mountains of Emery County he would say, “It’s an addictive sport.”
This was just his second day snow kiting and the frostbite he got on the first day did little to deter him from the thrill of coming back for more. His family and he split ways when they got to Utah. While he headed for the mountains of Emery County the rest of the family went on to Snowbird. Jeff Kafka of the San Francisco Bay area and owner of Wind Over Water Kite boarding had a handful of students he brought with him to enjoy the wind and thrill this ridge has to offer. Jeff has had more than 10 years experience in kite boarding and seven years in snow kiting and says this is definitely the hot spot for snow kiting.
Holiday Cheer
Local merchants treated with good sales over holidays
With the holidays officially behind us the report card from Emery County businesses on the success of the season is, like the rest the country, mixed.
Like most rural areas, the trick for local businesses is finding ways to keep local shoppers home for the holidays rather than watching them travel over the mountains to spend their Christmas dollars and for some businesses the success of the season was more dependant on holiday shoppers from outside the area rather than local shoppers.
Such was the case for Larry Liston, owner of TC West in Castle Dale. He reported that his business was up slightly from last year and while some of the increase was due to local shoppers, the majority of it came from businesses outside the area buying merchandise from his store.
Alco in Castle Dale reports that sales were up as much as 20 percent from last year and Dwayne Story, who has worked at the store since it opened, believes it is due in large part to the fact that people are becoming better acquainted with the store.
Pat Jones, owner of Jones Ace Hardware and Radio Shack also reported that sales were good this year but the inclement weather that struck just prior to Christmas may have hurt sales somewhat by keeping last minute shoppers from venturing out as they normally would.
BLM developing draft impact plan to assist
in management of oil rich lands
In response to congressional direction in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Bureau of Land Management announced publication of the Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to guide future management of public lands containing oil shale and tar sands resources. Under the proposal in the Draft PEIS, the BLM would amend land use plans to allocate approximately 1.9 million acres of public lands in Utah, Colorado and Wyoming for potential commercial oil shale development.
The BLM is developing the PEIS pursuant to direction in Section 369(d) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The Act declares oil shale and other unconventional fuels to be strategically important domestic energy sources that should be developed to reduce the Nation’s growing dependence on imported oil.
“The potential of America’s oil shale resources to meet future U.S. demand for fuel is significant,” said BLM Director Jim Caswell. “Oil shale deposits on public lands hold the equivalent of 1.23 trillion barrels of oil. The lands we are proposing to make available are estimated to hold, at a minimum, the equivalent of 61 billion barrels. At the low end of the range, that would yield enough gasoline to keep American tanks filled for 18 years.”
Most U.S. oil shale resources are found in the Green River Formation of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. The federally owned portion of this resource is more than 50 times the country’s proven conventional oil reserves and nearly five times the proven reserves of Saudi Arabia.
Because there is no existing program for leasing these federal resources, the BLM is taking a thoughtful, deliberate approach to completing the PEIS. In cooperation with 14 federal, state and local government agencies, the BLM has been engaged in developing the Draft PEIS for nearly two years.
Caswell noted that the PEIS will not authorize any commercial development projects, provide for any leases to be issued, or commit the BLM to any particular course of action in the future. “The action proposed in the Draft responds to concerns expressed by the States and local communities serving as cooperating agencies,” he said. “With their help, we’ve developed a proposal that will allow development of this vital asset while protecting other resources found on these lands and minimizing the impacts on local communities.”
Between 305,000 and 1.5 million acres of BLM-managed lands would be excluded from oil shale leasing under the alternatives presented in the Draft PEIS. No leasing would be allowed in Wilderness areas, wilderness study areas, other units of the BLM’s National Landscape Conservation System, or Areas of Critical Environmental Concern that are closed to mineral development, among other areas. The PEIS anticipates that oil shale resources on identified lands would be leased as a solid mineral, and additional site-specific NEPA analysis would be completed on each application before any lease could be issued.
The document released today is a Draft document. Publication of a Notice of Availability in Friday’s Federal Register begins the 90-day public comment period called for in BLM’s planning regulations. “The BLM welcomes anyone with an interest in oil shale development to review and comment on the Draft PEIS during the next 90 days,” Caswell said. “Full public involvement is critical throughout the process and helps ensure that decisions about oil shale development not only protect the environment but also serve the Nation’s energy needs and support local communities and economies.”
The complete Draft PEIS is available in electronic form (PDF) on the project website, http://ostseis.anl.gov , beginning today. Beginning tomorrow, paper and CD-ROM copies of the Draft will also be available at the BLM State Offices in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming; and BLM Field Offices in Vernal, Price, Richfield and Monticello, Utah; Meeker, Glenwood Springs and Grand Junction, Colorado; and Kemmerer, Rawlins and Rock Springs, Wyoming. The website will be enabled to take comments electronically beginning Friday, and written comments may be mailed to: BLM Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resources Draft Programmatic EIS Comments, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne IL 60439.
The BLM previously issued six 160-acre leases for oil shale projects on public lands in Colorado and Utah under its research development and demonstration (RD&D) program. Information available from these projects is included in the PEIS and was considered during development of the alternatives presented in the Draft. For additional information on the BLM’s efforts to develop federal oil shale and tar sands resources, visit http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/energy/oilshale_2.html .
Big game guidebooks arrive late this year
This year’s 2008 Big Game Proclamations (now called Big Game Guidebooks) will arrive later than usual in southeastern Utah. It may be Jan. 14 before big game hunters will be able to find one at a license agent or division office. This is disappointing since the application period runs from Jan. 2-31. The delay will leave applicants with only two weeks to select their hunts and submit their applications.
Hunters who don’t want to wait until mid-January, can view the 2008 Big Game Guideboook on DWR’s website: www.wildlife.utah.gov/proclamations/2008_biggame/.
After Jan. 2, hunters can also apply on-line by going to DWR’s home page, then selecting the “Licenses” sub-menu, and finally the “Hunt drawing applications” menu. For the first time this year, all applications must be submitted on-line or by phone. No paper applications will be accepted. Instructions will be posted on the DWR website after Jan. 2.
The “on-line only” application requirement is not the only change that awaits big game hunters. For the first time this year, a hunting or combination license must be purchased, before a hunter may apply for a permit in the big game drawing.
“This change is important to the future of the state’s wildlife,” says Jim Karpowitz, director of the DWR. “As costs continue to rise, the requirement that hunters buy a hunting or combination license will provide us with the revenue we need to continue managing big game and other wildlife into the future.”
The hunting license costs $26 for residents and the combination license costs $30. Karpowitz has some advice for you as you decide which license to buy. “I’d encourage you to buy the combination license,” says Karpowitz. “It costs $4 more than a hunting license, but it also allows you to fish.”
Hunting and combination licenses are available on-line at: www.wildlife.utah.gov. They may also be purchased at a DWR office or hunting license agent across the state.
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