OCR Text |
Show DESERET NEWS, TUESDAY, AAAY 3, Business Action Ads 1977 v Sports Deaths ' Drought brings hardship to southeast Utah By LaVarr Webb Deseret News staff writer MONT1CELLO Dark threatening clouds pile up here nearly every afternoon but it doesnt rain. Mother Nature seems intent on giving southeastern Utah one of the worst thrashings of its history. fields and forests which should be green from spring showers are dry and To survey the drought situation, the Deseret News sent reporter LaVarr Webb into the areas hardest hit. This is his first report. Subsequent stories will deal with the impact on farmers, wildlife, how people are coping and what will happen if the drought continues. dusty burning up under the desert sun. mountain country, usually covered with several feet of melting High snow, is either completely barren or is covered with just a "skiff of snow, as r one put it. Streams which should lx bubbling busily as the annuul runoff begins are low and sluggish. Reservoirs which should be filling until water bursts over the spillways are lower than anyone can remember. And perhaps worst of all, farmers here, who should be happily planning, plowing and planting, are pessimistic and glum wondering what to plant or even whether to plant. Southeastern Utah, like the rest of the state, is being plagued by a drought the worst since pioneers settled here. However, unlike most of the rest of the state, where drought impacts are still only distant threats, here they are stark reality. This area is the driest in the state, with only 24 percent of normal precipi-Sc- e DROUGHT on B Missile output will at continue will make it hard for Congress to the Deep Creek withdrawal. The about 50 miles south of Wendover. News Washington Bureau WASHINGTON acres WASHINGTON The Carter administration said today that the decision has been made not to close the Minuteman III production line, in Ogden, at this time. Defense Secy. Harold Brown, in letters to members of Congress, confirmed Mondays report in the Deseret News that the Air Force will proceed with production of the Minuteman III in increments, and may buy almost all of the 60 weapons authorized by the 1977 Appropriations Act. two-mont- h said Secy. Browns decision rescinded the January order which would have closed the line this September. The decision. Rep. McKay said, is based on the need to maintain ICBM production capability as a bargaining chip in the SALT negotiations. "As long as our production capability is there and were turning out missiles, we have more leverage with the Soviets, Rep. McKay said. The decision was also at least a warning to the Soviets that the U.S. willl maintain its production capability in the face of the Russian rejection of U.S. proposals in Moscow last month. h, arms-limitatio- n - Closing of of reverse area is 26,927 federal land in the Deep Creek Mountains created new anger Monday among Utah members of Congress, already unhappy with the Carter administration. Rep. Gunn McKay, the only Democrat in the state delegation here, called the Bureau of Land Management action "administrative abuse and warned that if the administration continues to lock Utah citizens away from land, water, and resources in the state, somebodys going to get shot. Rep. McKay told reporters in his office that the land withdrawal is another alamo. He promised to fight it with every congressional device at his disposal. The Interior Department, however, appears to have used an emergency code, which provision in its newly-revise- d By Gordon Eliot White News Washington Bureau The decision was a sharp reversal of policy for the Carter administration and came as a distinct surprise to many members of Congress. Sen. Jake who has worked to get the Air Foice to Gam, build parts of the Minuteman III to upgrade older II models, said he is pleased with the partial victory Secy. Browns decision indicated. He said he will continue to push for congressional language in appropriations bills to produce new guidance sets and other components of the Minuteman III to improve the older missiles. At least this keeps open the only ICBM production line in the free world, Sen. Gam said. Newsline: Land closure draws fire By Gordon Eliot White The first increment of 10 missiles will be produced at the Boeing Co.s Ogden plant this fall, probably in October and November. The Thiokol Corp. will begin casting solid fuel engines for them at Brigham City in July. Secy. Brown said he will review "the requirement for additional missile production at appropriate times. Since most parts for the Minuteman 111 have already been bought, the Air Force has spent 70 percent of the cost of the entire proposed production run through September 1978. The Air Force believes it is likely that the remaining 50 weapons will be cleared for assembly. The secretary said his decision was based upon the need to maintain an ICBM production capability while a complete review of alternatives to full missile production is being conducted. At the same time, he said, this production of full missiles would allow the more important parts to be used as spares, should that ever be required. desert. Many wells have gone dry. 'Another Alamo, ' McKay says Hill AF8 Rep. Gunn McKay, The drought causes cattle to congregate around water holes in the 10 using emergency authority, the department foreclosed a provision of law which allows Congress to overturn it by adopting a relatively simple concurrent withresolution. While emergency drawals are good for only three years, they require a full act of Congress to reverse. By It looks as though they looked up the fine print, Rep. McKay said of the BLM code, which was revised last year. also was Rep. Dan Marriott, upset over the withdrawal, which blocks access to the area by the Atlas Corporation, which holds uranium mining claims there. The withdrawal was the first land closing under the new code. Rep. Marriott said he regretted that the agency was "so easily conned by environmentalists. emergency Smugglers believed refueling in deserts By Maxine Martz Deseret News staff writer Smugglers are believed to be using Utahs west desert in Millard County extensively to refuel planes and transfer loads of marijuana flown in from Mexico. hurry and didnt bother to put the gas caps back on the wings. All the seats were removed and there were six drums in which they intended to put fuel, Bradford said. We believe they fly to Mexico, pick up marijuana, then two or three pickup drive vehicles haul trucks or gas to the desert where the planes land and refuel and transfer all or part of their load to the ground vehicles, Bradford said. We are of the opinion that these landing sites are used for refueling areas so the aircraft can continue on to Alaska, making stops in some other states, he said. By refueling in the desert, they dont have to stop at four-whe- We think it is a large, expensive operation and has been going on for quite a while, said David Bradford, director of the State Narcotics and Liquor Division. He said there are indications as many as 43 landings were made in the past few months, some of them by large aircraft, such as Lockheed Lodestars and DC3s, as well as smaller planes. i A twin-engin- e Beechcraft, hastily abandoned on the desert about 60 miles west of Delta last Thursday, has been flown to Salt Lake City for investigation. Bradford said he is working with the Utah Attorney Generals Office and expects to file papers in court within the week requesting that the plane be turned over to the state for illegally hauling drugs. He said investigators have evidence there was marijuana in the plane and evidence the smugglers were refueling. They abandoned the airplane in a airports. Bradford said, We found what is believed to be marijuana. It has been verified by field test, but not by the state chemist yet. He said there is no way to patrol the vast desert area on the ground. He said the only patrolling has been with the Utah Highway Patrol airplane, and then only when officers have received leads. He said there are no periodic air checks. We rely on the public, sheepher-der- s and others, to notify us of anything unusual, he said. barred to all public use the grounds that a rare Snake Valley The area was on cutthroat trout, an unusual species of stone fly, the cape fern, bristlecone pine, and archeological sites need protection. The BLM was asked to close the area by environmentalists from Brigham Young University, the American Fisheries Society. and Colorado State University. None of the species cited are on the present list of rare or endangered species. The scientists believe, however, that the trout habitat is a complete ecosystem and is important to the study of prehistoric Lake Bonneville aquatic life. Road building to mine sites would disturb that environment, BLM said. BLM indicated that it planned to publish the withdrawal in the April 29 federal register, but the item did not appear. Rep. McKay said the action is not legal until it is withdrawal by published and charged release. press See DEEP on 0 Rebuild dam? Chances nil News Washington Bureau WASHINGTON There is no chance the federal government will seriously consider rebuilding the collapsed Teton Dam at any time in the foreseeable future, administration and congressional sources said Monday. At the Interior Department, F. William Eikenberry, chairman of the Teton Dam Failure Review Committee, said the Carter Administration has no intention of rebuilding Teton. A spokesman for Sen. Frank Church, said, not in my wildest imagination will Congress reconsider the dam. It has been paid for at least twice already, Sen. Churchs aide said. I am sure no one wants to pay for it again. Other members of Congress and the administration said the same thing. There is no way the federal government will evfn think earthfiU dam, of putting back the said the department is making Eikenberry a detailed study of the Ririe Dam in Idaho, which may have a safety program similar to that which caused Teton to fail. He told the Deseret News that the Ririe Dam is suspect because it is built of the same type of earth fill used in Teton and is located on similar highly fractured bedrock. only more of it. But because the is close to residents, rangers have had to haul off mattresses, box springs and old unwanted wood and metal furniture. Rather than take this junk across the valley to a legal dumping area, residents take it up the canyon and leave it near litter piles. canyons area All the litter picked up yearly in Utah's mountainlands would make a big pile a very big pile. It would equal 20 large homes on Salt Lake Citys east bench and could bury Provo High Schools main buildings. d Conservative estimates are that the litter weighs four million pounds. But thats not counting litter that could be picked up around cities and nearby highways. Obviously, something needs to he done s Environmentally-conseioucitizens have already pledged support of a cleanup camIt is being paign scheduled July sponsored by the Utah Lions Clubs, Utah National Guard, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, Utah Parks and Recreation and the Deseret News. It is one of the newspaper's Goals for 1977. Some of the worst litter offenders in the state use three major canyons in the Salt Lake mnun-tainlan- 11-1- 6. Streams Trails Campgrounds Ranger District. About 300 of the 2,000 tons of debris picked up annually in forestlands are found in Millereek, Big and Little Cottonwood canyons. The litter is similar to that found in other Flowers in full glory Annual spring flower displays on Temple Square and the office building plaza of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-da- y Saints, although somewhat delayed, are now in full bloom, Peter Lassig, church gardener, said today. Lassig said the spring displays are about a week or two later than usual because of winter weather in late March. But they will be in bloom for the next three weeks or so, he said. About 35,000 bulbs and 65,000 biennials were planted last fall, Lassig said. They include tulips, pansies, violas, aubrietia, arabis, phlox, crocus, hyacinths, iris, daffodils and English wallflowers. The flowers may be seen on Temple Square and at the Church Office Building plaza between Main and State Streets, but perhaps the most impressive display is the garden along the promenade between Hotel Utah and the Church Administration Building on South Temple Street, Lassig said. The displays are also enhanced by recirculating waterfalls and fountains on the east and west sides of the plaza. Lake reflects drought The Great Salt Lake has already reached its highest point for 1977, according to Ted Amow, district chief of the U.S. Geological Surveys Water , Resources Division. The high point was recorded on March 15, and it was a foot and a half below the peak of last year, Amow said. The reason for the lower peak elevation ' ; was the drought, he said. On March 15 the lake reached 4,200.75 feet above sea level and stayed there until April 15. As of April 29, the lake had receded 1 foot. Last year the peak was reached on June 1. 4,202.25 feet above sea level The lake rose only .45 foot from its low on Nov. 1, 1976, when it was pegged at 4,200.3 feet above sea level, Amow said. The seasonal rise this year is the smallest on record, he said. , Let's remove that mountain of canyon litter By Elizabeth Schoenfeld Deseret News staff writer the West At least one area in Utah owes its name to littering. Thats Bottle Hollow in Duchesne County. The folksy story surrounding the name is that in the early 1990s, U.S. soldiers returning from Roosevelt to Ft. Duchesne would toss liquor bottles at the site since liquor was not allowed in the fort. However, today not many people want to rename town names or campsites folksy or not. Would we want to camp in a tent at Pop Can Campground, hike up Gum Wrapper Trail to Beer Can Mountain or fish at Salmon Egg Jar Fishing Hole near Canned Corn Can Lake? These are exagerations. But years ago, it we had listened to ecologists warning of todays plight, we wouldnt be in the mess (literally) were in today. And if we don't heed the warnings of foresters, conservationists, ecologists and other specialists, what kind of mess will we be in in another 20 years? So Utahns are being asked to devote one 6 and go to one day during July campground, hike along one or more trails or along a stream and clean un Pick up that litter. Dont leave the rotting cans or the n lunches or the paper plates and cups. Pick up the litter. Stow it in a garbage bag and haul it home with yon If you help with this project, sponsors say youll never legiet it. Individuals or groups willing to pledge support should send their names and addre.s ses to: LITTER. Deseret News, P.O. Box 1257, Salt Lake City 84110. The Deseret News also supports the "Pitch-Ifor Utah campaign sponsored by Chambers of Commerce throughout Utah and by the Utah Brewers Association and scheduled May 11-1- Head-o-n crash kills 2 I1EBER Two persons were killed and two others injured, one critically , in a head-o- n collision on U.S. 40 11 miles north of here today. The Utah Highway Patrol said a westbound car occupied by two Salt Lake City brothers drifted into the eastbound lane and collided head-o- n with a car driven by Arlene Walker Thompson, 53, Duchesne. The mishap occurred at 7:20 a m. Mrs. Thompson and the driver of the westbound car were killed. His name was not released because relatives had not been notified. Mrs. Thompsons daughter, Mary Alice, 12, was in very serious condition in Utah Valley Hospital. Provo. The brother of the Salt Lake victim was being treated for minor injuries in a lleber hospital. The accident brings Utahs traffic fatality toll to 84 so far this year, compared to 83 at the same date last year. Salute to Teton volunteers - June 4 has been REXBURG, Idaho (AP) declared "Volunteer Appreciation Day by officials of cities and counties in the Teton Dam flood area. Officials met Monday in Rexburg to issue a proclamation setting aside the day to honor those who helped flood victims following the Teton Dam collapse last June. Madison County Commission Chairman Keith Walker said he thinks many persons who helped residents following the flood would be surprised by the progress made in rebuilding the area. half-eate- n 14-2- 1. Some camp fees go up Fees ranging from $1 to $3 will be charged this year at 287 campgrounds in the national forests of the Intermountain Region of the U.S. Foiest Service. Some campgrounds will have fees increased by $1. But Vem Ilamre, regional forester, said 348 other campgrounds can be used without fees. The number of campgrounds for which fees are charged has increased by one over the 286 last year in the region. Fees will be charged at 185 campgrounds in Utahs national forests. A spokeswoman in Hamres office said the Utah fees will be about the same as they were last year. |