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Show THE MANTI MESSENGER (USPSNo 3284 0000) is published weekly for $12 00 per year (In County) Qnd $14 00 pe' year (Outside Sanpete County) by Inc 35 S Messenqer Enterprise Mom Monti Utah 84642 2nd class paid at Monti Utah POSTVASTfR Send address chanqes to The Manti Messenqnr 3 S Mam Mom. Utah 84642 postnge Vofum tOO Number 2S MANTI. UTAH 04642, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31. 185 Plane 30 per copy B35 4241 South Sanpete School District enrollments rose 86 this year enrollments in the District Sanpete School oialed 2,365 pupils this year, an increase of 86 or 3.8Vo over the Sail school "south number registered in 1984. This was reported by Utah Foundation, the private research organization. The study noted that enrollments tor the entire state rose from 390,141 in 1984 to 403,305 in 1985, a gain of 13,164 pupils during the year. The rapid enrollment growth of the past lew years will soon begin to slow down, however, according to the foundation. Foundation analysts point out that the enrollment increase recorded for 1985 is below the estimates made at the time of the 1985 legislative session and is significantly under the projection of 20,000 or more made earlier in the decade. Among the factors that have combined to temper enrollment growth in Utah are the following: 1. Utahs birthrate has peaked out and now is declining. It is estimated that there will be 37,300 live births in Utah this year and that this total is well below the peak of nearly 42,000 recorded in 1980. 2. In contrast to the strong to Utah during the 1970s and caly 1980s, there has been an apparent population during recent years. of 3. Action by the 1982 Legislature in prescribing a uniform entrance date for kindergarten pupils has conin slowdown tributed to a enrollment growth during the past several years. According to the Foundations enrollprojections, the ment increases in the future should begin to decline next year. By the end of the current decade, the annual increases in school enrollments are expected to be less than half of what was experienced this year. Moreover, if the trends of the past three years are projected into the future, school enrollments in Utah will be flat or may even begin to decline slightly ten years from now. year-to-ye- 1980-199- 0 in school slowdown This enrollment growth should be good news to school administrators, legislators, and taxpayers. In the past, a substantial part of increased spending in the state was devoted toward meeting the problems posed school the by burgeoning populations. The Foundation report that one of Utahs emphasized major financial problems during recent years has been that its school enrollments were rising at the same time enrollments in other states were and shrinking. Between the 1974-75 the 1984 85 school years, enrollments in Utah increased aby 27(rc while they were declining by approximately 130 throughout the nation. This strong divergence in school enrollment trends made it extremely difficult for Utah to keep up with other states in providing funding for education. I ven though school outlays in Utah were rising much faster than the U.S. average, the state continued to lose ground in the funds provided per pupil. Over the past ten years, total expenditures operating climbed by 190o, compared with an increase of only 1350 for the U S as a whole. Per pupil expenditures, on the other hand, rose by 126ro in Utah and I68'o throughout the nation during this same period. The reason for this seeming contradiction, of course, is that enrollments were climbing dramatically in Utah at the same time that they were declining nationally. Much of the present increase in school enrollments Utah is concentrated in Davis, Salt Lake, and Utah Counties. These three counties recorded a gain of 9,074 pupils, or 69 of the total increase for 1985. Lnrollments rose in 36 of Utahs 40 school districts, declined in only three districts, and remained unchanged in one district. school Guv asks legislature to fund railroad purchase BY BRUCE Cold, foggy nights hav created a winter wonderland In Tucked away in the midst of those myriad sums, large and small, that constitute Gov. Norman H. Banger-ter'- s budget is an item, perhaps insignificant overall, but none the less especially significant for Sanpete and Sevier counties. Sanpete County. Salina turkey plant will not says Norbest re-ope- n, BY PAT MELLOR The Salina turkey processing plant raided on December 5 on the basis of anonymous tips that spoiled meat was being used in products destined for the school lunch program has been closed, and will not reopen, say Norbest Turkey officials. The Norpro Turkey Processing plant was entered on the evening of December 4 by FBI investigators armed with warrants alleging (hat the plant used "green, or spoiled meat in its bologna and hot dog products designated for school lunch programs. The federal warrants also reportedly alleged that meat was being stolen at the plant. As of this date, charges still have products shortly after the raid, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued an order that the products were not to be purchased or served in the school lunch programs. Some of the products remaining in the Norpro inventory, however, have since been cleared for sale. not been filed against the company. FBI investigators removed several bags full of evidence on the night of the raid which they said would undergo laboratory analysis to determine whether the allegations in the warrants could be substantiated. The U.S. District attorneys office in Salt Lake City said investigation into the matter is continuing. Meanwhile, the Norbest Company first laid off part, then all of its crew working in the processing division, and then decided to shut dow.i the processing operation completely. The processing equipment used at the plant, Norbest says, will be removed soon. is The Norbest Company voluntarily cooperating with the FBI in its investigation of activities at the plant prior to the raid, and issued a statement saying the company is anxious to have the problem solved. The company asserts that there is no health problem related to the issue, and according to t'le Norbest attorneys, the problem appears to have possibly been the result of the indiscretion of a few people working for the company. The Norpro division of Norbest voluntarily recalled many of its JENNINGS Its the neat little sum of SI, 300, 000 to provide for the state to purchase the Marysvale Branch of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. The $1,300,000 is part of a package to cover funding for the Department of Transportation. Whether or not the $1,300,000 allocation wins the approval of the State Legislature, when it meets next month, is moot. Several legislators have questioned the advisability of (he states getting into the railroad business. The State doesnt want to get into the operation of a railroad, according to Ruth Ann Storey, a spokesman for Governor Norman Bangertcr, but it does want to see the branch back in operation. Several groups, she said, have indicated an interest in operating the Marysvale Branch as a short line. The proposals take into account such possibilities as operating from Richfield into Sanpete County and thence down Salt Creek to Ncphi, of operating between Richfield through Gunnison to I evan. feed had come in bv rail instead ot by truck. The price of the Marysvale Branch was first set at $600,000 but then the Interstate Commerce Commission upped the figure to $1,300,000. An appeal has forstalled the D&RGW from proceeding with salvage operations until the State has time to reach a decision. The turkey industry, of course, only one that has suffered because of the closure. Other phases of agriculture have also been hurt, along with mining and manufac- Halbert Jensen, who will soon be has been Ephraims and comthe by mayors appointed missioners to organization spearhead the effort to get railroad service restored to the area. In the meantime the lack of rail transportation continues to take its toll. One local turkey grower said that his net receipts from this years crop would have been $20,000 more if his isn't the turing. And a major coal mining development in prospect for Sanpete Countv has faded with the loss of the branch. the 51.300,000 through It. Gov. Val Oveson said on a recent visit to Sanpete Getting the legislature. Countv, will take a major lobbying effort on the part of local people. And getting the appropriation approved, he added, will only open the door a few niches toward bringing the railroad back to Sanpete and Sevier. New Years Eve party planned Manti Utah Stake's New Years Eve party this year will be a family affair. Families are urged to attend as a Gail unit, according to and Pam Buchanan. Those under 14 should be accompanied by parents in any event, they said. Planned events include a dance which will begin at the Armory at 9 p.m. KMTI will furnish the music A floor show will be presented at 10:30 p.m. Taco salads will be served. Noisemakers will be furnished to in the New Year and dancing will continue into the New Year. Everyone should dress in his Sunday best clothes. usher Getting the right wood is key to efficient wood burning stove operation BY BRUCE JENNINGS Dean Harmer heats his Manti home with about six cords of wood Douglas fir and blue spruce that he gathers each mainly summer. He burns the wood in a stove and distributes the heat throughout the house with a fan. The fir he burns has a high to heat medium potential somewhere in the 14 to 20 million BTU per cord range, according to a pamphlet published by the Utah Department of Health. The heat potential of the spruce is lower, under 14 million BTUs per cord. The spruce, for other reasons, too, isnt rated as high by the Department of Health as the fir, which gets a grade of "good. The fir and the spruce are conifers, relatively abundant in the the that surround mountains Sanpete Valley, but nevertheless theyre becoming harder to come by, in the dry form, because more and more residents are turning to wood for fuel. So is the Department sometimes called The pinyon excellent rating. an gets pitch pine Its prized for its distinctive odor, its pitch content, its high to medium heat potential. But its also becoming scarce and residents sometimes travel out into the desert regions, miles from the Sanpitch, for a pickup load of weathered pitch pine. of Health. The oak, available at the lower elevations, is cut when green and then allowed to dry for a couple of seasons. When dry its hard on saws and axes. Thats why its usual to cut to fireplace length while still green. Another local hardwood that gets about the same high rating as oak is but its in somewhat short maple supply. The aspen is probably hauled off the mountains in ever greater quantity than the conifers, but it earns only a fair rating and has a low heat potential. It burns rapidly, gives off quite a bit of smoke, but can be harvested by even the most inexperienced woodsman. The fruit woods, like the native chokechcrry in the mountains, and the apple in the backyards, are rated The department gives the oak an excellent rating, reports that it has a high heat potential in the 20 million BTU range, "burns slowly, short flames with glowing coals. Theres another local conifer the juniper generally called cedar that is plentiful, usually easy to come by (It grows in the foothills), that gets a good rating. Like the pitch pine it has a pleasant odor. The juniper wood produces around 8 BYU per cord. 14-1- It has been quite plentiful lately in the area because of the land railing carried on by the states Division of Wildlife Resources. Kenneth Howell, who has several racks of oak drying across the fence from Dean Harmcrs woodpile of fir and spruce, is high on the oak. i high on the scale, up there with the oak and the maple, higher than the fir and the spruce. accrues from the gathering of wood, a neighbor says: We make it a family proiect, oven dinner." including a dutch The Sanpete Ranger District issues permits for wood, around 1,500 to . 000 mainly in four and five cord lots at $2.50 a cord each year. Most of the permits are for Pine fir and spruce or for aspen, a few for oak. (The district also this year sold about 1,900 Christmas trees.) The states Division of Wildlife Resources also issues permits for wood on the mainly juniper land it has railed. Dean Harmer pays around $15.00 for the wood he harvests to heat his home. But that cash outlay, he points out, doesnt come near to covering his overall cot: the pickup he uses to haul it in, the chain saw and other tools. But it's still much cheaper than heating a home with oil or electricity, he claims. And there's another benefit that Chopping wood It on of th "plooauro" of having a wood ttovo. |