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Show THE CANYON COUNTRY WATCHDOG By Scott Groene. Jennie Lnpton 6 Kevin Walker of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance Representative Hansen Promotes Freeing Glen Canyon The effort by the Glen Canyon Institute and the Sierra Chib to tear down the Glen Canyon dam recently received a boost from an unlikely ally: Utah Representative Jim Hansen. For years, desert rats wishfully discussed freeing Glen Canyon from die stagnant waters of Lake Foul, but few took the idea seriously. It took bold genius by Mr. Hansen to give credibility to the dream by holding congressional hearings on the proposal last month. Although it is undear Mr. Hansen intended this result, no doubt some day, when the beauty of the Glen returns, the public will remember Rep. Hansen's maneuver fondly. The Glen Canyon Institute is now preparing a citizens' environmental assessment on the environmental consequences of removing the dam: for more information contact the GQ at (801) 355-155- 1. Conoco update: How the BLM Wasted Your Tax Money This Month SUWA filed an appeal against BLM's decision to approve the Conoco oil well in the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, and The Wilderness Society, Natural Resources Defense Council, US. PIRG, and Wild Utah Forest Campaign all signed onto our appeal As this is written, the administrative court has not yet issued a decision and Conoco is still drilling on Utah State land. Instead of trying to protect the monument from Conoco, BLM sent out its public relations team on editorial board visits to seek support for the drilling. Hee Haw Hansen Representative Hansen maintained his reputation as a wit in the House of Representatives when he recently declared that establishing die Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument cost Utah school children "a billion dollars in royalties. There were 12 sections of state land under lease for coal, or approximately 8000 acres, when the monument was established (there are 176,000 acres of state trust land in the monument, but industry was willing to pay to speculate on potential coal development on only the 12 sections). Utah gets an 8 royalty on these lands. So to receive a billion dollars" in royalties, the state would have to sell 12.5 billion dollars of coal Which means, presuming the coal industry knows where the coal is, that each of the 8,000 acres leased is worth over 1.5 million dollars, using Mr. Hansen's figures. Utah leases these 1.5 million dollar parcels to coal companies for $1 per year. So why is the coal industry so dumb that it doesn't even bother to lease more of this incredibly valuable land at the going rate of less than 10 cents an acre per month? Because while there is coal in the monument, it is not economical to mine. Hansen, and Hansen's information source, Utah Geologist Lee Allison, ignore the economics of mining coal Unfortunately, the Utah media continues to repeat Hansen and Allison's wild claims, without question. Oil Drilling in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area? The National Park Service is now considering a proposal to drill an oil well within Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in the Escalante River drainage. If approved, access would be from the Butt Trail, and a new road would be constructed up the middle fork of Moody Canyon to a location near the top of the Water Pocket Fold, just south of the boundary line between Capitol Reef National Park and GCNRA. For several years the applicant, Viking Oil, has pursued drilling on its lease and the NPS has managed to avoid issuing a decision until now. NPS says it may release an EA and decision in the spring of 1998. To get on the mailing list for the EA, or to submit comments, call GCNRA at 0. for San Rafael Swell The Bureau of Land Management recently released a draft vehicle (ORV) management plan for the San Rafael Swell which is an enormous disappointment BLM intends to approve ORV use inside areas designated as Wilderness Study Areas, and proposed for wilderness protection under HR. 1500. BLM also intends to allow ORV use in areas the agency previously designated leaves The zones. draft also some areas completely open as primitive plan ORV playgrounds, for example around Factory Butte. ORVs crush cryptogamic soil crusts, pollute springs and rivers with petroleum by products, threaten native plants by enhancing exotic weed growth, trample riparian BLM Releases Draft ORV Plan off-ro- ad non-motoriz- ed Knave of Hearts and damage archeological sites. In Utah, ORVs are vegetation, fragment wildlife habitat for threatening native insect and plant species with extinction. responsible at least in part However, BLM foiled to consider these types of Issues with this draft plan, and instead motorized and recreationists, merely attempted to allocate areas between concerns. environmental with no consideration of While the draft plan is bad, it could get worse. The BLM recently mailed out information about additional motorcycle questionnaire forms to ORV advocates, seeking trails that may be designated open for this use. non-motoriz- ed at the What you can do: Please contact the agency either with a letter or by The best more will letter comment below dout). letters (a addresses given probabty cany will be those based on your personal experience with particular areas, that raise particular concerns. Provide reasons why particular canyons or areas should be closed from ORV use. Here are some of SUWA's concerns There should be no ORV use inside areas the BLM is supposed to protect as Wilderness Study Areas (the draft plan would allow ORV use inside WSAs), There should be no ORV use within areas proposed for wilderness designation under HR. 1500 (the draft plan would allow ORV use in HR. 1500 areas), Hie BLM must consider the damage ORVs cause to environmental values such as riparian areas, soils, wildlife, archeology or plant species, when deciding where ORV use will be allowed (the agency foiled to do so with the draft plan), The BLM should not allow ORVs in a), the north and south forks of Coal Wash, (which are within the Ski Mountain WSA), b). upper Eagle Canyon, c). the Behind the Reef route, d). Muddy Creek where it cuts through the San Rafael Reef, and e). routes into Seegers Hole (the draft plan leaves these areas open for ORVs), and all ORV use should be limited to designated trails there should be no unrestricted ORV playgrounds. You can request a copy of the draft plan by calling the BLM at mail 600 So. 125 Utah email or to comments to 84501, West, Wee, written comments BLM, be with who will use receive this email, Tom, (If please polite tgnojekOut.blm.gpv you he's a decent guy). e-m- - ail - Scott Groene is still working for SUWA and is still stuck in SLC. SERP A draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Dixie National Forest's Spruce Ecosystem Recovery Project (SERP) has finally been released. As anticipated, SERF'S "Proposed Action" plans to cut an 8,000 acre roadless area of virgin sprucefir and aspen, known as "Spruces". The Forest Service is accepting comments until November 24th, and claims that it has not yet decided whether to go forward with the Proposed Action. Harvesting Spruces amounts to economic absurdity. The Forest Service stubbornly justifies cutting Spruces by pointing out the benefit of "recovering the economic value of dying timbeif yet, in reality, the Spruce cut is soaked in red ink. According to economic data provided by the Regional Forester's Office in Ogden, the Spruce harvest would result in a net loss to the Dixie National Forest of $765,000. So who wins? A roadless area is shattered, wildlife habitat and wilderness values are lost, and taxpayers bear the burden of a below-cotimber sale. SUWA continues to press the Forest Service on its roadless area policy, requesting that the Forest Service recognize the environmental and economic value of preserving roadless areas. Hugh Thompson, Dixie National Forest Service Supervisor, has responded to SUWA's repeated requests to leave roadless areas alone by claiming that the Forest Service is in fact willing to stay out of roadless areas. To date, that declaration has been all talk and no action. Only two major proposals have come out of the Dixie following Thompson's claim - SERP and Dark Purple - both propose to slash through roadless areas. SERP offers the Forest Service a chance to act responsibly, and to avoid the environmental and economic disasters that result from harvesting timber in roadless areas. The SERP EIS contains one alternative, "Alternative A," that would leave Spruces untouched. SUWA has requested the Forest Service adopt Alternative A as the preferred alternative, and informed the Forest Service that any attempt to harvest Spruces will be contested. st Matthew Prebluda Robin Zank BAKERY 84 West 200 North (Just off Main St. west of the Bowen In Moab's historical red sandstone building. 6 Motel) 259-411- ajine European patisserie & atfef featuring: Espresso, Cappucino, Caffe Trieste coffees, Danish, Croissants Light lunch & soups. 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