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Show Home of the Mormon Miracle Pageant July 14 thru 16, 19 thru 23, 1983 MANTI, UTAH 84642. THURSDAY, Volum 97 Number 46 Cold, wet weather causes by Bruce Jennings Thistle Lake, earth slides, the closure of Highway 89, the shutdown of the Marysvale branch of the D&RGW these have been capturing most of the attention. But other consequences of the long, cold winter are now becoming more and more evident. And these consequences will multiply with the and the warming temperatures rising runoff down canyon streams County extension agent Tom Reeve estimates that half the grain and most of the field corn havent been planted because farmers havent been 30C MAY 26. 1983 for farmers, ranchers set-bac- ks able to work their land. for Sheepmen scrambling enough feed until they can move their herds onto the spring range, beef producers are buying hay and the turkey farmers are paying more for feed. are Our pastures are three weeks behind, says Raymond Jensen, who with his brothers operates a Weve dairy business. been paying $100 a ton for alfalfa 300-co- hay. "The soil has been too cold and wet to plant. We still have around 70 acres to sow to grain and corn. Ben Kjar says they wont be able to plant 196 acres that usually produce oats and barley for their beef herd. t Weve sold off our calves," he because were out of feed. says, Usually we feed some of them out. About half our land is under water and this will get worse as the runoff picks up. "Because of the water, we cant pasture our cattle on the meadowland, so weve got them on the alfalfa fields. That means our hay crop will be down. Well buy hay to winter over. We want to keep our breeder herd intact." Mr. Kjar says that the high water table is killing some of the alfalfa and that if the water stays on the meadows long it could kill the grass. In Ned Madsens view, the turkey growers are going to be hardest hit run-of- by Pat Mellor Councilman Lionel King noted in last Wednesdays meeting of the Manti City Council that according to information he had received from Manti Irrigation Co. President Ned Madsen, in several places the pipe for the pressurized irrigation system had been placed on previously existing ditches and the ditches could wash out the fill used around the pipe. Because of this, Mr. Madsen asked the City to consider allowing residents to use the culinary water system for initial water until the completion of the pressurized system, billing the users at the same use quantities established last year. - - V , ,. J&c . i : 4T- i u V5- - V,-- 'M ' : 4 r . - Yf I i, V (V AH., j ' ' "V 4 4. vf . VivY Mayor Bessey said the residents could use the culinary water for other watering chores, provided water use did not compromise fire protection. Councilman Bryan McArthur 4 K Much Sanpoto grazing land is now undor water. by Bruce Jennings Forest Service people are this week assessing the damage and getting started on the cleanup following a major land slide in Twelve Mile Canyon Sunday wall of afternoon that sent a water roaring down the creek. The stream swept through the Pinchot Campground about eight miles east of Mayfield, tore out irrigation structures a mile east of town, overflowed a few acres of cropland and then spent its energy without further damage. Mr. and Mrs. Dale Faatz, Mayfield, who were in the canyon at the time, heard the roar of the rushing water, managed to get their pickup onto higher ground and then drove to Mayfield to give the alarm. 10-fo- Sanpete District Forest Ranger Ben Black, who flew over the site in a helicopter Monday afternoon, to assess the situation, said that the slide which blocked Twelve Mile Creek apparently originated in the Corners area of the canyon and formed a mud, gravel and rock dam in the Narrows which gave way sometime Sunday. The water swept through the Pinchot Campground, depositing a mass of debris trees, mud and on its way. Apparently no rocks major damage was done to the buildings and other facilities at the campground," Ranger Black said. The ground in Twelve Mile accordCanyon is slide the to and Black, Ranger ing that flowed into the creek, causing a super-saturate- small lake to form, was the largest of several that have occurred in the area this spring. "We are getting earth movements in all the canyons," Ranger Black This is a problem every said. it is an especially acute but spring, one this year because of the heavy precipitation. The canyon roads are hazardous now. Several of them are closed and drop-off- s because of slides, cave-in- s and people should stay off these roads if possible until the situation is stabilized. In the meantime, keeping open the Fairview Canyon Road, also on the Sanpete Ranger District National Forest, of the Manti-LaSa- l has been given top priority. Thats because it is the main commuter route for Sanpete Valley residents who are employed in Carbon and Emery county energy developments. At a meeting in Fairview attended by Forest Service, Utah Department of Transportation, Sanpete County and Coastal States Energy representatives, the present situation on 1 and the future of this transmountain road were discussed. Slides have been occuring on frequently, they were told, there have been several temporary closures of the road, and UDOT has been making a major effort to keep it open. It's a high risk road, they agreed, because east of Fairview it traverses ground that is very unstable and at the higher elevations it is subject to high winds and drifting snows. Every night when I go to bed. U-3- U-3- 1 Is will up considerably due to the discontinuance of D&RGW service. Lamont Blackham, general manager of the Moroni Feed Co., has estimated that because grain is now being trucked in, a more expensive method than by rail, the cost of raising turkeys in Sanpete will increase by to 2 cents a pound. That could reduce the producers' potential profit of $400,000 to $800,00, or increase their loss by the same amount, he says. The cold, wet weather has caused in increase in the mortality rate for young Iambs and calves, according to Mr. Madsen. He thinks most of the beef and sheep farmers, however, will probably have enough feed and the vegetative growth is go 1 good now. Not all the sheep people agree. Some of them are leasing pasture land and wondering how long it will be before they can get onto the spring range in the Sanpitch Mountains. And then there are the summer allotments on Manti Mountain. Will the soggy ground, the heavy runoff, the slides, keep them from moving onto their allotments by July 1? According to Agriculture Commissioner Stephen T. Gillmore, 300 acres of cropland have been damaged in Sanpete, with a 70 to 90 percent crop loss, and 10,000 acres of pasture land. "Sure, people who have been laid off are hurting and businesses are feeling the pinch." one farmer says, "but agriculture is taking its knocks, too." Some help may be available. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the State of Utah and the Small Business Administration are holding a meeting tonight (May 26) at the Mt. Pleasant public library at 6:30 p.m. to explain the disaster assistance that is available. Individuals, families, businesses can learn about the assistance that is available to those who have lost employment, lost income, can't meet their mortgage payments and soon at the meeting. And reportedly people in agriculture can get the same kind of information at the Farmers Home Administration office in Manti. moved that the city allow the use of the culinary w ater at last years rates until the pressurized system is on line and working, provided adequate fire protection be maintained, and the council voted unanimously in the affirmative. One contractor? Councilman King asked whether the City planned to award bids to one large contractor or several small contractors, for the sewer construction. The council agreed to table resolution of that question until further information could be obtained. Attorney Paul Frischknecht on Page 12) Pageant tryouts set for June 3 2-- Tryouts for the annual Mormon Miracle Pageant will be held on June 2 and 3 in the Manti LDS Seminary building at 7 p.m. Mrs. Macksene Rux of Salt Lake City will be arriving in Manti on June 1 and will be conducting the tryouts. There will be auditions for every part, according to Mrs. Dyrcng, who serves as assistant pageant director and who will also assist with tryouts, along with Mrs. Jane Braithwaite, Mrs. Merilyn Jorgensen and Mrs. Taw nya Olsen. Rehearsals will begin immediately following the selection of the cast. flood threatens Mayfield, wipes out campground Slide-cause- d Campground because of weather related factors. Thats because their feed costs Culinary water available at last years rates Flooded meadowland west of Ephraim glvos provlew of what may happon whon hoavy f roally starts. f per copy now unusable. I I Rep. Ray Nielson commented, expect to wake up and learn that 1 has been closed again because of another slide. The group agreed that a major realignment of the road should be undertaken in order to bypass some of the more hazardous area. We cant make any plans until after the thaw and we can get into the mountains and survey the situation, a UDOT representative said. Coastal States Energy is developing the Skylines Mines northeast of Fairview and a company representative said that Coastal States will maintain the road from Electric Lake to Echo Canyon, where a major is coal mining development underway. Manti-LaSa- :stef , f National Forest l g- Supervisor Reed Christensen promised that the Forest Service will cooperate fully both in keeping 1 open and upgrading a route that has become, since the Spanish Fork Canyon slide, a principal lifeline. UDOT expects to award contracts U-- 6 soon on up Spanish Fork Canyon, around Billies Mountain to bypass Thistle Lake. U-The target date for the main access road to Carbon and Emery counties, is Dec. 1. A decision on connecting up with the main south-nortbound road through Sanpete County, however, has not yet been made. rs s IIIV fJ ; V jy U-3- U-8- h That means that Sanpete residents will have to count on secondary roads, and in some cases canyon roads, to get them where they want to go for at least a few more months. .1: ; M ' PlUd up dabrls at Pinchot Campground, causad by slid MayfUld Canyon. K in |