| OCR Text |
Show community In approving a SI. 5 million request for a loan to help construct the long-awaited Mill Creek Project in Moab Valley, Utah's Board of Water Resources has indeed taken a bold step. It may be the first step in an entire new philosophy in state government, where local revenues are used to construct local projects of real meritsuch as the Mill Creek Projectwithout the assistance or the direction of the Federal Government. With Washington's new attitudes towards water conservation projects, particularly those in the western states, the reaction of Utah's Board of Water Resources is admirable. Members are going to ask the Utah Legislature to get behind their plans for needed water reclamation projects in Utah, and indications are that Utah's legislators are going to be in favor of such action. The Moab Mill Creek Project might very well mark the beginning of a new attitude of self-help and independence from Washington. That new attitude " could be really refreshing after a half century of convincing ourselves that we couldn't live without being helped along by Washingtonians and bankrolled with their funds which they collected from us originally anyway. There are some important details that need to be ironed out locally, as mentioned in a Page One news story in this issue. Moab Irrigation Company stockholders need to be contractually assured that their rights in the lower valley will not be jeopardized. Rate structures for culinary water, not only in the lower valley, but in Spanish Valley as well will need to be clarified prior to a bond election on the issue. Those questions and many others which will certainly arise must be answered by local officials in the very near future. And then local voters will need to approve the sale of bonds to pay for Grand County's share of the bold project. I am certain that given the facts, our voters will overwhelmingly approve that bond issue. We are closer than we have ever been in history in seeing the waters of Mill Creek utilized for the future of Moab and Spanish Valley. And this project has been attempted in a variety of ways since the turn of the century. Certainly reasonable people working together with the future of this valley and its residents as their motivation, can easily iron out the minor problems that appear to exist at this point. The big hurdle has been jumped. We have solid support from the State of Utah, sjt Moab Sportsmen, who were extremely vocal and active just prior to the annual deer hunt last fall, have become pretty quiet this winter, but it's time for them to get things going again. The Utah Board of Big Game Control is about at the point of setting hunts around the state, and officers of the Division of Wildlife are seeking input from citizens. Local Conservation Officer Garth Carter has included in this week's issue, a questionnaire designed to get such comments so that he can compile a portfolio of local opinion to present to his superiors and to the Board of Big Game Control. All of our shouting and complaining last year didn't do us a whole lot of good when matched against the up-state powers, but that's no reason we shouldn't try again. Tell Garth what you think. Sam Taylor miiiitiiiiiiiiiimiMiimniiimiiiimiiimiiiimimiiiiiMiiiitiiiiiiiiim ttinnninti mi turn |
