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More news from Inctign Country
Deal signed to protect
ancient art in Utah canyon
By Mike Stark
Associated Press Writer
SALT LAKE CITY — An
agreement aims to safeguard
th o u sa n d s o f p re h isto ric
American Indian drawings and
carvings from truckers’ dust in
a fam ed U tah canyon near
w here a Colorado com pany
wants to dramatically increase
energy development.
The pact signed at the Utah
Capitol last week is the first ma
jor attempt to address concerns
over dust in Nine Mile Canyon,
whose miles of decorated walls
are sometimes called the world’s
longest art gallery.
T he canyon has been the
focus o f intense debate for sev
eral years after Denver-based
Bill Barrett Corp, proposed de
veloping 800 natural gas wells
on W est T avaputs P lateau,
w hich sits above N ine Mile
Canyon. The Bureau o f Land
Management has not made a
final decision on Bill Barrett’s
proposal.
The prim ary concern has
been concern over dust from
the unpaved road being kicked
up by an increasing number of
trucks ferrying equipment and
workers.
Some worry the dust could
hurt the ancient art panels de
picting bighorn sheep, owls, a
two-headed snake, spear-wield
ing hunters and warriors en
gaged in hand-to-hand combat.
The agreement is meant to
lay out protections for the rock
art if Bill Barrett’s proposal is
approved. I t was' signed by
BLM officials, U tah Gov. Gary
“We sincerely hopes it’s going to work.”
— Pam Miller, chair of the Nine Mile Canyon Coalition
Herbert, Bill Barrett Corp., as
well as environmental and ar
chaeological groups and advo
cates for the 78-mile-long can
yon.
The deal, affecting some 233
square miles, including the can
yon and the West Tavaputs Pla
teau, includes a list of tasks such
as more dust suppression and
studies to determine if the rock
art is being harmed.
Much of the agreement’s fi
nancial burden will be shoul
dered by Bill Barrett.
D u an e
Z avadil,
th e
com pany’s vice president for
governm ent affairs, said the
company could end up spend
ing nearly $1 million a year for
dust suppression, contractors to
research and monitor rock art
and other steps.
“We want to document and
be sure we’re leaving that rock
art in as good a shape as we
found it,” he said.
The plan for 800 more would
likely mean about 200 trucks per
day using the canyon’s winding
road during the peak of devel
opment, Zavadil said, adding
that estimates of 1,000 trucks a
day were used prim arily for
governm ent’s analysis o f the
project.
T h e agreem ent gives the
company some regulatory cer
tainty if their project moves
ahead, he said. •
“Hopefully we have the big-
gest stumbling block out o f the
way,” Zavadil said.
H erbert praised the agree
ment, which was a year in the
making by a long list o f politi
cally diverse participants, as a
triumph o f the “reasonable and
rationale.”
Selma Sierra, BLM’s director
for Utah, said it would ensure
that Nine Mile’s artifacts “will
be protected for generations to
come.”
Canyon advocates called it an
important first step but said its
success will be measured in how
it’s implemented.
Pam Miller, chair o f the Nine
Mile Canyon Coalition, said
she’s happy to see efforts to
tamp down dust and study its
p o te n tia lly adverse effects.
W hether the BLM cracks down
when problems crop up will be
som ething her group will be
watching for.
“We haven’t always been lis
tened to before when we’ve re
ported problems,” Miller said.
“But we’re hopeful. We sincerely
hopes it’s going to work.”
In Carbon County, which in
cludes a portion o f the canyon,
officials are hopeful the deal not
only protects the rock art but
also allows the energy project to
move ahead.
Com m issioner John Jones
said about 60 percent, o f the
county’s property taxes come
from energy development.
Page 9
Spi [yay Ty moo
January 13, 2010
Turner bid for Yellowstone bison draws protest
BOZEMAN, Montana (AP)
— Ted Turner’s bid to get 74
wild bison from Yellowstone
National Park is drawing stiff
opposition from those who say
the animals are being given up
for private profit instead o f
conservation.
Turner has offered to take
the animals at the request o f
M ontana’s D em ocratic Gov.
Brian Schweitzer.
T he m edia m ogul would
keep the bison five years and
then return them to the state.
As c o m p en sa tio n , T u rn e r
would keep 90 percent o f the
animals’ offspring, meaning he
would gain an estimated 190
bison from a herd prized for its
genetic purity.
Turner is a longtime cham
pion o f bison conservation and
owns an estimated 50,000 o f the
animals across the West. But ris
ing criticism over his latest plan
is putting the media mogul in an
awkward position. His represen
tatives insist he cannot take the
animals without getting some
thing in return.
Some conservationists and
federal officials — plus a group
representing dozens o f Native
American tribes — say the ani
mals should not be commercial
ized. At a public hearing over the
Turner proposal, they said the
bison belong on public or tribal
lands. That’s what state and fed
eral officials had promised dur
ing the past several years.
“You’re n o t being true to
your commitment not to com-
mercialize these animals,” said
Glenn Hockett with the Gallatin
Wildlife Association.
The animals are now in dis
ease quarantine just outside
Yellowstone. They are part o f a
5-year program to divert some
park bison from the periodic
slaughter the animals face, part
o f efforts to prevent the spread
o f the disease brucellosis to
cattle.
After prior attempts to relo
cate quarantined bison failed,
state officials had warned they
could soon be slaughtered.
Russell Miller with Turner
Enterprises said keeping most
o f their offspring would be nec
essary to offset the cost o f keep
ing 74 animals for the state for
five years.
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Native Comedy
January 16th, 8-1 Opm
Tickets on sales at thè door
$10
18 & over
Warm Spring Community Center
2200 Hollywood Blvd.
Warm Springs, OR
Sioux Falls program targets obesity in youth
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP)
— A Sioux Falls man is starting
a nonprofit venture to battle
youth obesity.
Aaron Maguire says Dakota
Kids Inc. will help overweight
and obese children from kinder
garten through grade 12.
The 12-week program will
involve nutrition education and
exercise, as well as body com
position and strength tests.
Maguire is working with the
U n ited Way, V olunteers o f
A m erica D ak o tas, N ativ e
A m erican tribes and a fte r
school programs.
A recent survey in South
Dakota schools found that 33.6
percent o f children are either
overweight or obese. State nu
tritionist Kristin Biskeborn says
the state is working to combat
childhood obesity.
The Sioux Falls school dis
trict also is working to battle the
problem.
No drugs or alcohol
For Info Call
503-348-3411
Zu
Police
(Continued from page 1)
According to the U.S.
D rug Enforcem ent Ad
ministration, an area that
qualifies for H IDTA sta
tus “must be a major cen
ter o f illegal drug produc
tion, manufacturing, im
portation or distribution;
have state and local law
enforcement agencies al
ready engaged; have a
harmful impact on other
areas of the U.S.; and, re
quire a significant increase
in federal resources.”
There have been 31 of
these areas designated
across the U.S. since the
program began in 1990.
Warm Springs would be
the first HIDTA in Indian
Country, Smith em pha
sized.
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■■ ■■
For vendor information
regon State Fair & Expo Cente
Salem Pavilion
2330 17th Street NE, Salem , O R
10 a.m. - 1 0 p.m.
G rand Entries at 1 p.m. an d 6 p.m
1 ^ 0 0 3 2 2 3 39£xi230;or
54 Í -444-8230
MC Nick Sixkiller
Oregon State Parks
Parking $ 3
This event is sponsored
by the sovereign governments of
G o to
www.wsnews.org
for the latest
W arm Springs
new s & events.
Native craft demonstrations
cultural drumming,
dancing & Tribal vendors