By Julie Johansen
The mission statement for Emery County Public Lands Council says, in part, that “its intent and purpose is to aggressively preserve the community heritage of Emery County by vigorously participating in and influencing all public land planning and decision making processes…”
This idea became a topic for discussion when Chairman Rod Player asked the commissioners for comments to start the council meeting on Tuesday morning. Emery County Commissioner Kent Wilson spoke, stating that the commission received emails from permittees regarding the non-motorized trails outside of the designated recreation areas on the Swell, i.e. Little Cedar Mountain.
Commissioner Wilson added that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) now has a scoping document posted for review and comments on its website until Jan. 2. The Public Lands Council will make a comment to the BLM following a subcommittee report from council member Leon McElprang, who will contact concerned citizens. The comments from the council included following the general plan of the county, which also calls for the historical preservation of areas within the county.
Kyle Beagley, Field Manager from the Price BLM office, also spoke about the scoping document and encouraged comments from interested individuals. The council requested a 30-day extension so that they could further study the options before submitting an official comment from the council.
Commissioner Wilson continued to speak to the council about budget changes in regard to the transient room taxes in the county. He stated that 50% would go to the county to be used to assist in maintaining the increased tourism in the county. Additionally, a law enforcement officer will be hired for the desert and an employee from Green River will be hired to grade the roads on the desert. Finally, some funds will go toward maintenance of the aquatic center. Commissioner Wilson assured that this would not diminish the tourism budget.
A majority of the remaining funds will help promote tourism in Green River because that is where the majority of the funds come from. Commissioner Lynn Sitterud commented that tourism is great for Green River, but western Emery County needs to promote industry. Commissioner Gil Conover expressed his agreement.
Commissioner Wilson then answered a question from a board member about the PacifiCorp tax levy judgement the county was facing. He answered that with negotiations, the fees were reduced and the county paid the fees in cash. Another question from the board was about the public access at the northern end of Long Street in Green River. Commissioner Wilson responded that the county attorney is addressing this problem, but that continued access to public roads is very important to all of them.
Beagley also reported that as of Jan. 1, Dana Truman will be the manager for the Price office. He added that the drilling at Lila Canyon Mine has been very successful. Foam will be injected this week and water will be where the fire is.
Continuing, Beagley said that the Dingell Act land exchange appraisals came in too high and bids are being reopened, though it could be a long process. He continued speaking about the Little Cedar Mountain bike trail plans. This is a field-driven office project and not a Dingell Act requirement, meaning other areas could be considered. It was mentioned that it is close to the Good Water Rim Trail and there are no archaeological features in this areas to be considered.
The gravel pit at Hadden Wash was also discussed. An environmental analysis is needed for this with a reclamation plan from Emery County for continued use. Next, Dal Gray of the Division of Oil, Gas, and Mining reported that with the increasing prices in natural gas, new applications have been received. Also, some closed wells are beginning to reopen.
Daren Olsen, Forest Ranger for the Manti-La Sal, spoke about the planning and training meetings happening during the winter months for Forest Service personnel. He said that the burning on Trail Mountain is complete for now and that burn piles in Lowry Water were burned while there was snow on the ground.
Next, Utah State Parks reported that due to a lack of funding, the new restrooms at Huntington State Park have been cancelled. Instead, the showers there are being renovated. It was also reported that the ice fishing tournament will be at Millsite on Jan. 13 and 14.
Reminders were given that State Parks and Recreation have been separated and function individually. This information resulted in questioning about the new street legal ATV licenses required. They will be enforced on the desert and include a simple online course for anyone over 18 years of age.
To conclude, Addison Healy, the Utah Department of Agriculture, announced the Castle Valley Crop School on Feb. 8 at USU Eastern in Price.
