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Show 5 A8 Wednesday, June 27, 2007 Vernal Express Sm (H (& (EL S C4 mV M 1 Ccrpr mooney to W ffiu",icn Bullrr r Hgo 5-7- fy Undor55lb PonderoQ Feed & Tack IMo.'Raco fff J- im 1V Denny 'Cie r.c&'ao Gc:vn (Dsnnl llcitccJ) 1 V y-T .4.- r 11 KK wwfij GENERAL TIRE " : I I nil Ml Reer veel General Cfiildr en M SI2 56 under B 'MM Mjk MM 1 5:00 PfTI Tough Chough To 5:OOpiii 9:0O nm - Rodeo Parade p "oalRodeo too ?m InoooR Areha Kid Corral InPOOR ArEAA 730 Pfn After Rodeo After Rodeo After Rodeo After Rodeo Country howdoum Autograph Autogrrph Autograph Autograph Rodeo Grout fvnon vnoa fvnon fusion AmPHTTHEATER O-OO PIT) 9:0O PA1 Daike Daoce Tight Fitwet Tight FrrnrrtT Jeaiv Cootet Jeaa CODTET i ;';:!. T!!7 LL7 0 Businesses, show your rodeo spirit! i ' Jj Dress up for rodeo f' " j Week! VO ' 1 JUUglllg X i 111-1 J 111 1 1 m m nan? s7 C5 4 ; 1 1 V- i l 1 fr.STk. 3 i r- 1 V IJFIIV, I: ; ;;-HTfl:Lfi2LE AT DflvJucia Vara Cmrrca oir fiLTSnXXir COUflTXY fto unuu;.vornti!fodco.cca) MO 0 IM) IN o on vni 0 1 i ' ., . - ' k " T -V tL V. '". 'V7 .V,.i- fit A V '- a Uintah County residents will be seeing this poster on display for the 2007 Meeker Classic Sheepdog Championship Trials. Artists are invited to submit artwork for the 2008 poster by Aug. 1 . Sheepdog trials juried art contest makes last call for submissions The 21st Annual Meeker Classic Sheepdog Trials juried art contest calls for artwork concerning sheep dogs in a variety of mediums, excluding photography and sculpture. Cash awards are first place, $2,000; second place, $650; people's choice, $350; best of northwest Colorado, $250. The winning entry will be used for the 2008 Meeker Classic poster and souvenir items. Artwork will be on display in the historic Wilbur Barn at the Trials site in Meeker, Colo., from Sept. 5 to 9. Winners will be announced at an Art Social on Thursday evening, Sept. 6 and will be offered at silent auction closing at noon on Sunday. Entriesmustbereceived by Aug. 1. For information, visit http:www.meekersheepdog. com or call Laurel Haney at (970) 878-0800. ' 5& 1 - " " The partially completed the Uintah County Recreation Center, Vernal, viewed from the air. A major construction endeavor, the recreation center will feature lap pools, slides, climbing walls, dance studios, party rooms and gathering areas. Photo credit Dennis Glines. Public help sought protecting Quarry in There is only one park in the By Wifta Pbbtiheh Uintah Basin News Service nation that protects a historic dinosaur quarry the Quarry Visitor Center at Dinosaur National Monument. However, due to structural deterioration the unique display is not presently pres-ently available to the public. But monument officials are asking the public for help to determine the best way to reopen this unparalleled un-paralleled exhibit. "We welcome your input on the Quarry Visitor Center project and are excited to be moving forward with this project," said Monument Superintendent MaryRisser. Public comment is requested on five alternatives designed to address the structural shortcomings short-comings of the existing center. The damage is blamed on the bentonite clay soils that expand and shrink. Built in 1957 and 1958, the Quarry Visitor Center was closed in July 2006 because the building was deemed unsafe. The major issues involved the round administrative admin-istrative wing and the east wall of the exhibit halL The second floor and roof are no longer adequately attached to the exterior walls and are in danger of collapsing. Some bolts connecting the roof to the structure have pulled out. On the east wall of the exhibit hall, the glass portion of the wall and the foundation are no longer structurally connected. Even during moderate winds, the glass portion of the walls sways back and forth. Carla Beasley, chief of interpretation inter-pretation at the monument, is enthusiastic about the process of reopening the fossilized remains re-mains of perhaps 1,500 bones, representing 13 different species of fossil vertebrates. The monument's paleontolog-ical paleontolog-ical resource is described as "the world's greatest single deposit of fossil dinosaur bones." Excavations Excava-tions at the quarry uncovered the most nearly complete Apatosau-rus Apatosau-rus skeleton known, measuring over 70 feet long and almost 15 feet tall at the hips. Beasley said the five alterh- tives identified in the Draft Environmental En-vironmental Impact Statement and Assessment of Effects for the Quarry Visitor Center Treatment Treat-ment Project, which is available for review, need to be analyzed while keeping three major goals in mind. First is the goal to continue to protect the fossil wall. This is presently a concern because prolonged structural movement has allowed rodents and bats to enter the building. Waste products prod-ucts left by these small animals have unknown effects on the fossils and must be cleaned from the formation. Alternative A is to do nothing but keep the current system in place. For those working at the facility, this is not a desirable option op-tion because the fossil wall would not be protected, nor could the public have access to it. The second goal is to provide all visitors with an opportunity to experience and appreciate the fossil quarry and its significance. Right now, this goal is not being met because visitors are not allowed al-lowed at the wall. This does not mean that there aren't activities at the site. Ranger led hikes, geology tours and a geology trail are on the current schedule of events. The staff also provides children's activities. The third goal is to protect public and employee health, safety and welfare by providing a structurally sound visitation and work environment. , For Beasley what is being called "Option B" is the preferred alternative. This alternative like Option C, D, and E would provide for a shelter and interpretive area at the fossil wall, either by rehabilitating the existing exhibit hall or constructing a new structure. In Option B the existing administrative ad-ministrative wing, south wing, and serpentine entry ramp would be demolished and their functionsrelocatedtotheshuttle staging area by construction of a new visitor center. This new visitor center would be approximately approxi-mately 8,000 to 10,000 square feet and be built in an area with more consolidated soil. One of the major benefits to this plan would be that water and wastewater utilities would be eliminated at the Quarry Visitor Center site. This would greatly reduce the potential of leaks into the expansive soil. Utility waterline breaks in 1983 released about 400,000 gallons of water, which saturated the gravel bedding below the concrete floor and allowed the bentonite to expand. This caused considerable consider-able movement and damage to the building. Alternatives C, D and E suggest sug-gest demolishingthe administrative administra-tive and south wings but recon-structingon recon-structingon site. Stability would be enhanced by new foundation with drilled piers. Each of these plans call for different building designs. Beasley explained that priority prior-ity is being given to get the wall back on display again. "If everything fell into place, we may be able to have the exhibit shelter open in the summer of 2009," said Beasley. "Everything would have to go well. The administrative office and visitor center would come after that." The construction of a joint National Park ServiceUtah State Parks curatorial faculty and paleontology laboratory in downtown Vernal is a separate project and was addressed in an environmental assessment last summer. AFindingof No Significant Signifi-cant Impact for that project was signed by the regional director. That project is ready to proceed as funding becomes available. A detailed explanation of all five options can be found on the park planning Web site http: parkplanning.nps.gov (search for Dinosaur NM). Hard copies will be available for review at the Superintendent's Office, Dinosaur Di-nosaur national Monument and at the county public libraries in Vernal and Craig, Colorado. Written requests for a CD Rom or paper copy can be mailed to Quarry Visitor Center Treatment Treat-ment Project, Dinosaur National Monument, 4545 E. Highway 40th, Dinosaur, CO 81610. Public Pub-lic comments will be accepted until Aug.10. Comments can also be posted electronically at http:parkplanning.nps.gov. |
