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Show aw anuR tw earn aostci asm?n Dental care proposed at Montezuma Creek clinic by Larry Wells after contact with San Juan Health Care Services has submitted a proposal to add dental care to the medical care at the Montezuma Creek Clinic. If Indian Health Services approves the request, dental services will be offered beginning June 1. Details were discussed at the March 30 meeting of the San Juan Health . ' 1' i 1 sT v' Services Board. In addition to dental care, monthly diabetes education r ' "v A A flock of phlox illuminate V, 4? I - , 2. T Z a Y 5 $ ' v r ' ;'v. 4 vv- ws'sJ a sand dune. and screening programs are being set up in v Alvin Reiner photc The San Juan Record HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER FOR SAN JUAN COUNTY, UTAH SINCE 1915 Vol 79 30 cents No 26 April 5, 1995 County recommends protection for 331,480 acres San Juan County missioners Com- have recom- mended the designation of 133,560 acres of land as wilderness. Commission- ers recommended an additional 197,920 acres on Cedar Mesa be designated as a National Conservation Area (NCA). Details of the wilderness proposals are outlined beginning on page 8. The recommendations were presented at a March 31 meeting of the 14 Utah counties impacted by wilderness designation. In total, the 14 counties propose less than one million acres for wilderness designation. In contrast, the HR 1500 legislation supported by the Utah Wilderness Coalition would designate approximately 5.7 million acres. The initial Bureau of Land Management proposal Wilderness advocates would designate approximately two million acres. have dismissed the county proposals as dead on arrival. Ken Rait, issues coordinator for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance said, These guys (commis- sioners) hate wilderness. They are selfish, they are and they are bent on stealing Americas wilderness legacy. George Nikkas, of the Utah Wilderness Associashort-sighte- Care d, tion, said, It is disappointing, but predictable. The San Juan County proposal is close, in many respects, to the Utah Wilder- ness Association recommendation for San Juan County. The San Juan County proposal combines elements of the original BLM proposal with an alternate wilderness plan proposed by Representative Bill Orton. The proposal uses few, if any, of the additional areas proposed in HR 1500, which proposes designation of more than one million acres in San Juan County alone. The NCA plan sponsored by Orton, would offer protected status to Cedar Mesa, while allowing some flexibility for archaeological management and ceremo- nial usage Americans. for Native Commissioners followed BLM acreage recommendations for the Cedar Mesa area, including the Grand Gulch Complex, Road Canyon, and Fish and Owl However, inCanyons. stead of more restrictive wilderness designation, the proposal recommends NCA status for the 197,920 acres. An NCA may provide for the protection and management of cultural resources, provide for historic uses to the Native American population for wood gathering, use of sacred sites as provided in the American Religious Freedom Act, provide for continued livestock management strategies, and provide for the continuation of sport hunting in the area. The report said most working professional ar- chaeologists believe wilderness is not the best tool to manage cultural sources. The report adds that rebe- cause of the numerous highways in the area, it will be impossible to protect wilderness values without providing additional strengths of force to maintain the area, which is in direct violation of the wilderness act. The San Juan County proposal follows guidelines initially proposed by the BLM at Lower Indian Creek, Dark Canyon, and Butler Wash. The proposal differs from the BLM recommendation in several locations. Commissioners do not include Bridger Jack Mesa, Behind the Rocks, Mule Canyon, or portions of Mancos Mesa. In rejecting Bridger Jack Mesa for wilderness designation, commissioners said that the area is probably too small for designation. The 5,290 acres listed is just more than the 5,000 minimum. In addition, the report said, it is questionable whether one would have an outstanding recreational experience in terms of un- confined recreation and outstanding solitude. From the mesa, you see the headquarters of Indian Creek Cattle Company, State Road 211, other roads, and sites of previous chainings. Commissioners state that the San Juan County portion of Behind the Rocks does not meet the requirements of wilderness recommendation because of development in Spanish Valley and Montezuma Creek. They are conducted in Navajo and English. The Montezuma Creek medical advisory committee should be on line next week. The board approved a letter of support for an Aneth Chapter request for Indian Health Services to build a new medical clinic in Montezuma Creek. In other matters, Cleal Bradford presented a report from the Blanding Advisory Committee. The committee has outlined seven goals for health care in Blanding. The goals will be presented at their next board meeting. Public hearings are being scheduled to present a grant proposal to fund preliminary drawings for the Blanding Medical Center and roof and parking lot repair at the San Juan Hospital. The Blanding public hearing is scheduled for The Monticello meeting will be scheduled April 12. cello city officials. Monti- If ap- proved, the roof and parking lot repair will begin this year. The Blanding project will require approximately three million dollars. It will require $150,000 to bring the project to the bid stage. The Blanding project will include four stages: 1) replace the Blanding Clinic, 2) replace the Blanding Birthing Center, 3) build an Emergency Care Center, 4) build an Ambulatory Surgery Center. Executive Director Dana Barnett requested the board members to look over revised bylaws and policies. He was asked to research the legality of donating money to the new College of - San Juan Campus technology center for the nursing program. More than 50 percent of the nurses in the health district have come from the CEU nursing program. Barnett expressed thanks to the San Juan Record for the article and reprint of the one percent sales tax ad. An Emergency Medical Services Outreach Grant has been submitted. If approved, the equipment in ambulances will be updated Eastern Utah to EMT intermediate level. The grant will also be used to improve communication and upgrade training courses and equipment. Bryon Sisson reported that income is at budget levels for the The board approved: n the purchase of a water heater; increasing the publicity year-to-dat- e. 100-gallo- concerning medical spein San Juan County, so more residents are aware of the available services. cialists truck traffic on US 191, in addition to many miles of existing roads in the area. In addition, the report states that it would be virtually impossible for management to occur in the area without funding for additional people to obliterate existing impacts from the area. The wilderness act specifically prohibits money from being spent to maintain wilderness. The report states that there are significant oil, gas, and potash reserves in the Behind the Rocks area. Mule Canyon was rejected because of its small size (5,990 acres) and proximity to existing roads. The northern portion of Mancos Mesa was rejected because of existing roads, possible noise from Halls Crossing, and known reserves of oil, gas, and Roadblock plans Local law enforcement agencies, including the San Juan County Sheriffs Office, Utah Highway Patrol, Utah Division of Natural Resources, and the police departments of Monticello and Blanding will be con- ducting random safety checkpoints throughout San Juan County for the remainder of 1995. According to the law en- forcement agencies, the safety checkpoints will promote the safety of the public on the roads of San Juan County. Officers conduct- ing the checkpoints will check for firearms, drug, alcohol, registration, driver license, and any other violations of the law. |