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Show Monopoly alleged T.V. feuding goes to court By JOHN JACKSON Staff Writer for In a suit asking $850,000 Utah Statellite Company has alleged that Telecommunications, Inc. is attempting to gain a monopolistic business advantage. The suit was filed August 15 in the United States District Court in Salt Lake City. Utah Satellite has been competing for Carbon County business with another company named as a defendant in the suit, Community Television of Utah. The suit alleges that Teleco- mmunications, Community Television, and Community Telecommunications, Inc. have combined, conspired, and contracted with each other and others to restrain trade and commerce in violation of the Sherman Act. In Carbon County, Utah Satellite and Television have Mud - slinging, a term usually associated with politics takes on a different meaning to these members of the LDS Helper Ward Mutual who participated in a football game played Tuesday evening. Hailed as the First Annual Mud Bowl by church ad for signals at crossing Another group of citizens from Carbonville has asked the Carbon County Commission to install signals and barriers at another Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad crossing near their homes. The delegation led by Greg Cowan, claim the crossing not only presents a hazard to home owners there but also to employees of Mountain States Machinery. They must use the crossing to get to work each day. Kevin Axelgard, one of the delegation, said there have been at least two recent accidents at the crossing. However, none to their knowledge has been fatal, he added. County Commissioner Lee Semken said the crossing problems in Carbonville are under investigation by a task force of the U.S. Department of (Continued on Page 2) visory Chris Hyatt flings the mud - coated football to an unrecognizable player as Gary Olsen, Annette Knighton, Marianne Ockey and Mike Smith look on. the By RAVELL CALL Staff Writer Steel States United competing for the cable television business. The suit also claims alleged violations in the Clayton Act and the Unfair Practices Act of Utah. The suit alleges defendants, Steel defends $50 million Group asks U.S. representatives met in with Price Wednesday of the United Mine Workers of America, the press, local city governments and legislative bodies to solicit support for a $50 million clean up of Geneva Steel in Orem. If the $50 million clean - up is not accepted, Geneva may shut down and there would be no demand for coal coming from the Horse Canyon mine at Columbia, to U.S. Steel according Erickson. Boyd representative representatives -- $50 million clean - up would bring the particulate emission of the Geneva plant to within the standards required by the Clean Air Act of 1977, Erickson said. The Environmental Protection Agency insists on the use of reasonably available control technology which is projected by U.S. Steel to cost $177 million, he added. The million EPA $177 would the air push requirement quality beyond the Clean Air Act requirement, he said. The state generally agrees with the USS proposal and since the state has passed primacy Community been hotly legislation the state, rather than the EPA, has authority to enforce the Clean Air Act in Utah, Erickson claimed. He added the extra $128 million would do very little compared compared to the initial $50 million in improving air quality. The $50 million USS pro- posal would cut emissions trom about 209 micrograms per cubic meter to 75 micrograms per cubic meter. Erickson added that the EPA requirement would drop the particulate level in the air only 4.3 micrograms per cubic meter more than the USS plan. USS representatives that the doing business as Community Television, have interfered with contractural agreements with local governments, have participated in false and misleading advertising, damaged equipment in order to cause Utah Satellites signal to be poor, and have used other means of distorting the programming of the plaintiff. Both cable television movies, nightclub specials, and concerts without commercial interruptions. Utah Satellite contends Community Television is able to negotiate a lower box office subscription rate for customers because of their higher volume of business. Telecommunications is the third largest cable television operator in the United States, according to the suit, with 600,000 connections and over $200,000 in assets. The suit notes that Utah Satellite had the original franchise in Price and had also obtained rights for East Carbon, Sunnyside, and Helper before January, 1979. clean-u- p complained that Geneva must do more than its share of the cleanup in Utah Valley. Erickson said the particulates in the area must drop 63 percent generally but Geneva must decrease the particulates it produces by 80 percent. Erickson explained that even with the smaller cleanup, Geneva will bring in marginal profits. Besides the initial pollution control costs, USS must pay 14 percent annually for maintenance and operation. This would amount to $25 million annually for the EPA requirement, more than Geneva makes in profit. Erickson said the $50 million does not include a recent $9 com- panies have brought Carbon customers recently released proposal million expenditure for a power house baghouse and a $12 million expenditure for direct pollution control items in current coke oven rehabilitation. Dave Bigler, public relations officer for the USS Western Steel Division, said Geneva must stand on its own merits and that the $177 million clean - up was definitely unfeasible. Erickson said, We think we have a very good case to show we shouldnt be forced to meet the EPA requirement at this time. Bigler added, Congress did us a disservice by setting the (Continued on Page 2) Study begins on wildland firefighting methods in county A study that will determine how to better utilize equipment and manpower to fight range fires in Carbon County is underway. Carbon and Emery County Fire Warden Mike Banzhoff told the Carbon County Commission Tuesday the study will determine areas of high value and high fire risk. The county can then determine where to station its pumper trucks, he added. The study, expected to be completed on or before October, will be done on non federal and non - agricultural lands in Carbon County. This includes what -- Banzhoff called wildland subdivisions such as the cabin camps at Scofield Reservoir. The possibility of a fire starting at the cabin camps has concerned property owners there for many years. One campsite organization has purchased a limited amount of fire fighting equipment. Usually, the Helper Volunteer Fire Department responds to structure fires in the Scofield area. But a structure could sustain heavy damage before the department arrives because of the long driving distance involved. Banzhoff said Scofield town now has two fire trucks to respond some of those fires. The equipment was paid for from county and state money, he added. to Banzhoffs assistant Tonna Smith said the fire study of Carbon County will gather enough information about property values to make maps showing areas of high fire risk. The maps also will detail a fire departments response time to allow the county to make decisions on fire control, he added. There also will be graphs showing weather patterns in the county for the past five years. This will give an idea of the ways a fire will act, thus assisting officials determine what kind of equipment should be brought in to fight the fire. (Continued on Page 2) Plant sale raises governor's ear By KEN VAUGHN Staff Writer - SALT LAKE CITY Gov. Scott M. Matheson conducted a special Tuesday on the of the planned effects potential sale to municipalities of portions of Utah Power and Lights Hunter plants near Castle Dale. conference Emery County, its special service district and school district have filed a motion with the Utah Public Service Commission, requesting the service com- mission order requiring the sale of the plants be rescinded or modified. Emery County Attorney Scott Johansen said he, attorneys for the Castle Valley Special Service District and Emery School district, State Senator Omar Bunnell and about 100 others met with the governor. The county entities fear the loss of property tax revenue, since municipalities do not have to pay property taxes. The Utah Attorney Generals office has asked the service commission to ignore Emery Countys request. The service commission order is the result of a stipulation involving a rate dispute with UP&L. The commission told the power company to sell portions of the plant to pay for a rate relund to its retail customers. It ordered UP&L to sell to the Intermountain Consumers Power Association a group of and Provo Utah municipalities and Bountiful. ICPA would buy 49 percent of Hunter Unit 2, and Provo and Bountiful would buy about 12 percent of Unit 1. Johansen said that should those portions of the power plants disappear from the countys tax base, it could cost the three county entities a total of $1.77 million a year or more in lost revenues. ICPA Executive Director Joseph Fackrell, also at the governors conference has said his group would create a private company to own the plants and would pay property taxes. If they can set up an entity, Johansen said, they can destroy it. Whats to stop them from disbanding it a year from now? to According Johansen, representatives of UP&L said at the conference Emery County shouldnt be worried about the loss of alxiut 12 percent of the plants taxes Johansen said oppose the sale if only one dollar in set a dangerous said. Provo and he would still the county lost taxes. It would precedent, he Emery County entities have requested a hearing with the Public Service Commission on the matter. Johansen said he is hopeful the service commission will agree with the county. But should the countys request fail and the tax revenues be lost, Johansen said, it could have a devestating effect. He said one possibility is that the county mill levy would have to raised substantially to make up for the lost revenue. Another possibility, Johansen said, is that the county would have to in some way limit growth. Weve got to gear up some way to make sure our population doesn't outstrip our capacity to deal with growth, he said. Johansen said attorneys the State attended the Legislature governors conference and offered three very rough representing proposals to deal with a loss of revenue by the county. I 1 to Bountiful. Fair preparations Christa Kaminski paints an advertisement on a window of the old Brad Ragan Tire store. The one time tire store will house fair activities involving 4 H and home arts. Other activities will take place at the Carbon County Fairgrounds. Among the highlights of the celebration will be horse shows, a style dress revue, flower and garden exhibits, and stock car racing. |