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Show UINTAH BASIN STANDARD. October 16. 2(X)I- - Page 1 Uintah Basin home to over one-thir- d of state's elk herds By Bariy Maxfield Kept behind tall fences, grazing like cattle are the elk of Utahs domesticated elk herds, an industry which is still in its infancy, but one that is growing. It has only been legal ninr? the 1997 legislative session to keep domesticated elk herds in the State of Utah.Currently there are 21 state approved elk ranches located throughout the state, eight of those ranches are in Uintah and Duchesne counties. Chris Denver, owner of the Royal Velvet Elk Ranch, located just outside of Roosevelt, was the first elk rancher in the state to receive licens-ingi- n the springof 1997. Denver runs about 80 head ofelk with numbers as high as 120 in his herd. Denver states the business has been good, better than cattle, although the current price of elk is down because of the economy. Denver sells elk harvested off the ranch to meat wholesalers who process the animals for sale to restaurants and specialty butchers. Elkare also sold for breeding purposes to other elk ranchers. Elk meat is gaining popularity as a substitute to beef, because ofits low fat content It is similar to beef in appearance and flavor. Although there are no published figures for elk meat sales in the Uintah Basin, it is estimated to be a $700 million dollar industry in the United States. Perhaps the most intriguing use is consumption of velvet from young antlers for treatment of arthritis and as an aphrodisiac primarily by Asia. Japan leads the industry in imports of antler velvet. Elk ranching is heavily regulated by the Utah Department of Agriculture. Ranchers are required to obtain a state license, which must be renewed each year. In order to obtain and maintain their license ranchers must comply with state mandates which regulate everything from fenringto reporting escapes, containing diseases, record maintenance and transportation. Domestic elk herds in Colorado and Utah have come under scrutiny recently because of the outbreak of Chronic Wasting Disease. Elk ranches in Canada have also experienced outbreaks of the disease, with entire herds being destroyed. CWD is a part of a family of diseases referred to as transmittable spongiform encephalpathies. It afflicts the brain and central nervous system and is contagious amongdeer and elk herds. Chronic Wasting Disease has not been detected in any Uintah Basin herds. Ron Greene of the Utah Elk Breeders association feels that local ranchers are very careful about their herds to make sure they remain disease free." Utah law requires that Register Voter registration deadline is 0ct.17 for general election Lieutenant Governor Olene Walker reminded voters today that they must register to vote by Oct. 17 to participate in the general municipal election. With the world in such turmoil, many of us wonder what we can be doingto help, said Lieutenant The very best thing people can do is become involved in their communities. One way to influence what happens around us is to vote, Walker said. voter For the first time, e on-lin- Wal-Ma- rt long-ter- 50 percent-Messen- Wal-Ma- rt m Enterprise. ger ivenitytothel Basin. On-Li- ne opened its doors in Ephraimjust over ayear ago, it rattled the local business scene. While another year of data is needed to is pulling evaluate the store's impact, it seems clear that in dollars from outside Sanpete County. But the store is also slicing into the sales oflocally owned businesses. Main street grocery, hardware and clothing store managers in Manti and Ephraim reported initial sales declines of up to EPHRAIM-Wh- en animals be immediately quarantined that show any signs of illness. Greene states that although the business is not as good as it was four years ago, it is still better than most agricultural products. This is such a new business and it is hard to tell how well it will do, a few years down the road we will be able to tell, he commented. Greene states the this is not really a competitive business because demand for elk meat outstrips supply. Ranchers are cooperating to by and keep up with this demand for elk meat, which is sold in specialty restaurants in places like Park City or Aspen, Colorado. According to Greene, Uintah Basin lawmakers Rep. Gordon Snow and Sen. Beverly Evans were very supportive special blood drive sponsored by the Red Cross and the Sevier Classified Employees Association was held at Richfield High. Blood from the Shawna Petersen ofRedmond. She was drive will be used to assist diagnosed with acute leukemia in July. She is undergoing chemotherapy treatments that will require her to receive 20 to 30 units of blood during the period of treatment. --Salina Suo. registration is now available. To acvoter registration cess the on-line option, voters can log on to www.elections.utah.gov and click on Voter Registration. To register, a voter must fill in the information, print out the form, sign it, and send it to the appropriate county clerk. (The county clerks address is automatically generated on the form based on the citizens physical address.) Citizens will receive confirmation of their voter registration directly from the county clerk. Online registration deadlines are the same as the mail-i- n deadlines. This method of registering is a free, convenient service offered by the state ofUtah, said Walker. It is an effort to encourage people to become more involved in their government. Registration forms are also available in countyclerk's offices, the telephone book, and the drivers license office. The voter registration forms must be postmarked by Oct. 17 to be accepted. However, voters can register in person at their county clerk's office through Oct. 29. On-lin- e SALINA-- A School District is now onboard the proposal to ask the state Gov. Mike Leavitt for a tax exemption for Panda Nebo Power's and legislature d 1000 megawatt generation facility in Juab County. Panda is combined million a cycle gas generation facility, which is $600 planning expected to have a taxable value of between $300 and $350 mil lion. imes-News. JUAB-Ju- ab A domestic elk from one ofthe Basins eight thrivingelk ranches. Since the state Legislature DOMESTICATED domestic elk 'approved ranching in 1997, 2 elk ranches have sprung up in Utah. 1 Planning board declines to conditional use permit for disposal ponds in county re-iss- ue The Duchesne County Planning ning and Community Development Clayton Chidester said the decision to deny the conditional use permit did not come easy for the board, but in reviewing facta and findings board members determined there were more negatives than positives in their dealings with the company over the pastyear. The board had already extended the companys earlier conditional use permit past May, in an effort to give Denver more time to try to remedy the problem, accordingto Chidester. There waa a lot of discussion over this, nobody wants to put somebody out of business, but at the same time wo needed some action, said Chidester. From the testimony we received the odor has never been controlled even to this day. Denver said he hired chemical com and Zoning Board last week voted three to two not to extend a conditional use permit for the operation of disposal ponds in the North Crescent area near Roosevelt. The ponds are owned by Water Disposal Inc. and have been under scrutiny by the board and health department officials for the pastyear due to strongodor problems and allegations the pond was affecting the health and water wells of some nearby residents. Water Disposal Inc. representative Chris Denver said he has been doing everything he could to comply with orders to eliminate the odor and recently decided to pump clean water down an approved disposal well. The lined ponds contain waste water from oil operations. Duchesne County Director of Plan Duchesne County cattlemen recognize 15th anniversary of checkoff program panies to research the problems and has spent a great deal of money attempting to attack the odor problem and reduce the smell through different means. Two chemical companies were hired to resolve the smell and chorine was added to the salt water evaporation ponds, said Denver, noting that the complaints still continued. The companys injection well operations are not affected by the bourds decision to deny a new conditional use permit, said Chidester. Denver said Water Disposal Inc. will appeal the decision to the Duchesne County Commission and is seeking legal advice. Denver said he has stopped pumping water down u disposal well and will allow mother nature to solve the problem by evaporation. h It is a sham that oil service as thisonccannot operate in Duchesne County. At the present time there is only one disposal facility led in Duchesne County," said enmpa-niessuc- Denver. Water Disposal purchased the salt water evaporation ponds in 1996. The ponds had been in operat ion for the past 16 years. gas-fire- -T- The beef industry set many goals for promoting beef demand when it head national launched the $l-pbeef checkoff program 15 years ago. And while many in the industry were excited about the new program, nobody in Oct. 1986 knew what heights the checkoff might reach. track record Now, witha for all to see, we can reflect on what the checkoff has done for the beef industry, said Brent Tanner, Executive Director ofthe Utah Beef Couner Chad Tyler Peterson formerly of Park City, SUMMIT-- Twenty-year-ol- d received a sentence of 5 years in prison for his participation in an accident, which caused Dusty Godnick to become a quadriplegic. According to testimony given, the young man, along with two other friends, had been Hrinkinjrindmifkmginarijuinia prior to getting intoacar driven bv Petersen, who began racing with another BMW- .- Summit County Bee 0-- RICHFIELD- - Security for Sevier County vehicles and at the Richfield Municipal Airport is being heightened in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Any vehicle used for emergencies in Sevier County that has not formerly been housed inside a building is not parked at the Sheriffs Office. County rVMnmiiiomr Gary Mason said this is a nationwide precautionary measure because of the terrorist actio Reaper. ield - MOAB- Grand County will support a U.S. Bureau of Land Management moratorium on new mining claims along (BLM) pln to place a 20-ye- stretches ofthe Green, Colorado, and Dolores rivers. --Times Independent. 15-ye- ar cil. In Utah, the Utah Beef Council beef checkcollecta the off and retains control of 50 cents of every dollar. That money is used by Utah beef producers to conduct and implement programs that are consistent with the Beef Promotion and ResearchAct TOOEL- E- Tooele County has a good chance of becoming the first in the state Tasco Engineering has been awarded to be home to a wind farm. a permit from the county to construct a 25 megawatt turbine facility on the Stockton Bar eat ofSouth Mountain. The site, which was perennially-wind- y rated as one ofthe states top windy locations, would likely have 1 7 turbines, each producing between one megawatt and 1.5 megawatts.-Tranacri- pt Lehi-base- POOL RE-P- L ASTER Work crews spent time inside the Roosevelt swimming pool last week installingncw plaster to the sides and bottom ofthe pool. City officials had hoped to be able to wait another year to undertake the cpcnsi e task, but determined the work needed to be done sooner. d Order today and get voicemail FREE for one month. Bulletin Stopjpenjoyihesimple, j r t r i s V - 7 Mammogram special Oct. Be, 1-- v. - . ' z v VH"--- ' -- s w -.- v- V !J 31 itwtir mke,1h, ' V. ' that could iato tfom life, S55 Special Mammogram For Screening Mammograms Only Uintah Basin Medical Center ' 4 - m We'll take T s. .w 1 W- ' apboudkeut .722-612- ... ' . 7 "' , - . . -- - j - your messages. Call I I UBTA - UBET ' and ask about TA-I- Bl I voice mail. 6 22-50- 0 ET COMMUNIC AT IONS |