KZMU News

Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park falls directly in the path of the upcoming solar eclipse on October 14. But the park will be closed due to staff shortages. We also hear from a ranger at Bryce Canyon National Park about what people can expect to see during the astronomical event. Plus, we have a report from KSJD about a program to get more indigenous employees working in the national park system.

//Photo: The moon passes in front of the sun during the annular solar eclipse that occurred in Utah in 2012. Courtesy of NASA via Flickr.

//Show Notes:

//Path of Totality

https://blm-egis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/instant/sidebar/index.html?appid=76844b9b3e3c48c6844f92d36ea04c23

Lift Up is a KZMU storytelling project intending to deepen understanding and empathy within our community and reinforce a sense of safety and belonging for all.

// Our next Lift Up storyteller is Erin Trim. After a youth of many moves, Erin found a home and community in Moab in 2008. You can find them immersed in creative projects, bopping around town chatting with folks, reading at the park, listening to music, roller skating, road-tripping, and playing outside with their dog or sipping tea with their cats.

// This episode of Lift Up was produced by M.A. Russell with support from KZMU.

// Find Lift Up Season 2 here:

www.kzmu.org/lift-up-season-2/

// Image Description: Erin Trim, a person with short hair, looks at the camera while holding a black cat with white paws

// Music in this interview is Yellowstone by Salmon Like The Fish, Trailmaker by Blue Dot Sessions, and Constellations by Siddhartha Corsus. Lift Up intro music is Chicago by Scott Holmes Music and outro music is Only Knows by Broke for Free.

**Note: this episode contains language that has been un-beeped for the podcast**

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of a plane crash that killed a North Dakota state senator, his wife, and two youngest children outside of Moab. Douglas Larsen’s single engine aircraft crashed shortly after take-off Sunday night in a remote area bordering Moab’s airport. The NTSB is currently on scene at the airport, working on a preliminary report of the crash. And later in the newscast, our radio partners report on a new review of Native American boarding schools in Colorado. Plus, people are using new technology to find private property to hunt in our region.

// Photo: (from left) Grand County Sheriff’s Lieutenant Al Cymbaluk, Grand County Sheriff Jamison Wiggins, and NTSB air safety investigator Fabian Salazar at a press conference on Monday. NTSB is currently investigating the cause of a fatal plane crash that occurred outside Canyonlands Regional Airport on Sunday night.

It’s Regional Roundup Monday! Medical debt affects millions of people and significantly impacts their lives. New legislation in our region aims to help them. Plus, a feature on the Fort Lewis Indian Boarding School and an interview with Wyoming author Craig Johnson about the latest Longmire book.

The Bureau of Land Management released a new Travel Management Plan for the Labyrinth Canyon Gemini Bridges area, closing OHV routes that conflicted with other uses, including riparian habitat. The plan was years in the making, and wilderness advocacy groups are applauding the federal agency’s decision. Plus, riparian restoration in the Southeast Utah Group of National Parks is getting some attention - and funding - from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. And later, a new survey of farmers and ranchers in the Colorado River Basin show they’re concerned about water shortages.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Sophia Fisher of The Times-Independent discusses the new, eight-passenger planes that will provide service to Salt Lake City, a recap of the city’s workforce housing ordinance, and an upcoming fundraiser put on by the Moab Abortion and Reproductive Rights Network. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News discusses plans for Utahraptor State Park, which broke ground this week, as well as the legacy of local landscape photographer Tom Till, who is retiring.

// Show Notes:

https://www.kzmu.org/blm-closes-over-300-miles-of-roads-to-ohv-use-in-labyrinth-canyon-gemini-bridges-area-plus-weekly-the-news-reel/

Researchers working with the Nature Conservancy's Dugout Ranch are studying how a breed of desert-adapted cattle fare in this region compared to Red Angus. So far, they've found the criollo prefer larger, more drought resistant forage than drought-sensitive grass. We also hear from our partners at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at CU Boulder about studying grasshoppers in the field.

//Photo: Criollo cattle are being studied at Dugout Ranch, as well as other ranches across the Southwest. These criollo are being studied by the Jornada Experimental Range in New Mexico, who partners with Dugout Ranch. Photo by TED by DGAR on Flickr.

//Show Notes:

//Criollo research at Dugout Ranch, in partnership with the Nature Conservancy

https://www.nature.org/en-us/magazine/magazine-articles/criollo-cattle/

LGBTQ+ artist and educator Cal Bulmash says they feel comfortable in rural spaces. But ‘rural’ is not traditionally associated with queer community. So drag performance in rural areas, with its playful exploration of the gender spectrum, is particularly meaningful to Bulmash. This Friday, Moab Pride will host them and other rural drag performers for an all-ages show, bringing the art of drag back to Moab. Plus, our radio partners report on a Black history in Utah and a group of Tibetan monks touring the country.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: The Moab Pride visibility march through downtown on September 23rd.

Drag Show Details:

Friday September 29th at Hearthspace

6pm Dance, 7pm Drag

UPR: ‘Tell the Story’ conference brings Utah’s Black history to life

https://www.upr.org/utah-news/2023-09-22/tell-the-story-conference-brings-utahs-black-history-to-life

Aspen Public Radio: With a message of compassion, Tibetan monks share a path to happiness in Aspen

https://www.aspenpublicradio.org/arts-culture/2023-07-19/with-a-message-of-compassion-tibetan-monks-share-a-path-to-happiness-in-aspen

After over a decade of deliberations regarding recreation use along the Labyrinth Canyon corridor of the Green River, the Bureau of Land Management will finally make a decision by the end of this week about whether it will close a portion of the motorized vehicle roads, and if so, how many. Plus, we hear from our partners at KSUT about whether an energy company can redeem its bond release after failing to properly reclaim its mine. We also hear from KSJD about a delegation from New Mexico’s Pueblo Tribe that went to Washington D.C. recently to lobby for protecting Chaco Canyon National Park.

//Photo: A road used by motorized vehicles runs through Labyrinth Canyon along the Green River. Photo by EcoFlight.

//Show Notes:

//BLM Land Management Proposal

https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2001224/510

It’s Regional Roundup Monday! Today’s show features hummingbirds in the Rocky Mountains, an author interview about the new book 'The Last Ride of the Pony Express,' and details on the Salt Lake City mayoral race.

An Estonian oil company, Enefit, recently abandoned its plans to mine oil shale on federal land in the Uinta Basin and lost the authority to use its water rights for fossil fuel production. It’s a huge win for environmentalists who were fighting the proposal — the company was hoping to produce 50,000 barrels of synthetic oil daily and use about 11,000 acre feet of water per year from the Green River. And later in the newscast, our radio partners report on a new solar plant in Red Mesa and breakthroughs in geothermal energy in southwestern Utah.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Sophia Fisher of The Times-Independent discusses concerns over downtown’s aesthetic conditions, preparing for the upcoming eclipse, a rise in Spanish Valley’s short-term rentals and an 84-year old ‘legendary’ skydiver. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News explores rabies and bats after two tested positive at Arches National Park. Plus, she discusses the summer reuse arts residency and the upcoming Red Rock Arts Festival.

// Show Notes:

https://www.kzmu.org/abandoned-oil-shale-lease-is-a-win-for-colorado-river-basin-according-to-environmentalists/