KZMU News

When Kara Dohrenwend moved to Moab in the early 1990s, she remembers the creek system in town was basically invisible, covered in invasive plant species like tamarisk and Russian olive. With a background in community-driven design and restoration work, Dohrenwend quickly got involved. She’s now worked for over two decades restoring the creek ecosystem. All these years later, it remains fascinating to her. Even after Mill Creek plotted its course through her own home one day this summer. “I have actually joked that Mill Creek really did go out of its way to flood my house. It really did. It went uphill.” Plus, the Great Salt Lake reached record lows this year and Utah lawmakers are scrambling for solutions.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Kara Dohrenwend, executive director of Rim to Rim Restoration, in Mill Creek. Dohrenwend personally mapped how the creek’s water moved through downtown during the big flood this August.

// If you think there’s someone or somewhere we should profile with an audio portrait, please reach out to [email protected]

// Rim to Rim Restoration

https://revegetation.org.customers.tigertech.net

// Music in Today’s Audio Portrait:

// ‘Tune on Karen Dalton’s Guitar’ by Peter Walker live at WFMU on Irene Trudel’s Show, ‘It Is What It Is’ by Peter Biedermann live at WFMU on Irene Trudel’s Show

// Sounds In Today’s Audio Portrait:

‘THUNDER/Rain low frequencies 4-CHANNEL-48kHz’ by BlueDelta, ‘Elbow River 220530_01’ by Robert.Crosley, ‘Field-recording – Nature – Creek’ by quetzalcontla

// Mountain West News Bureau: To save the drying Great Salt Lake, officials must preserve the largest river that feeds it

https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/environment/2022-11-21/to-save-the-drying-great-salt-lake-officials-must-preserve-the-largest-river-that-feeds-it

It’s wintertime, and this is local Eric Trenbeath’s season. For the past decade, he’s spent his winters all over the La Sal and Abajo Mountain ranges, examining conditions as the regional forecaster. And he’s witnessed Moab’s growing interest in winter sports. For a town not really known for them - it’s notable. “It’s quite a unique desert winter community,” he says. Today on the news, we check in with forecaster Trenbeath about the upcoming winter recreation season.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: A recent photo of the La Sal Mountains from the Moab Area Forecast page on the Utah Avalanche Center website. The site is replete with weather and snow conditions, special announcements, and up to date photos. Informs their caption, ‘the open slope has been completely cross loaded by up canyon winds. Notice the pillowy nature of the snow across the entire slope.’ Credit Utah Avalanche Center

// Utah Avalanche Center: Forecast for the Moab Area Mountains

https://utahavalanchecenter.org/forecast/moab

A proposed county ordinance creating a noise buffer has worried businesses in Moab. The rule would require some noisy establishments — like OHV outfitters or dog kennels — to be located outside of a 200-foot buffer from residential areas, schools and churches. Those businesses within the zone would need to build an 8-foot wall or tree barrier. Current businesses won’t be impacted unless they make a substantial improvement to their property. But some OHV employers felt blindsided by the proposal. Plus, the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services has decided to not pull the liquor license of World Famous Woody’s Tavern. And the Colorado River’s foundational legal document turns 100 years old this month. The agreement among seven western states was groundbreaking for its time but, as our partners report, it continues to contribute to the southwest’s water crisis.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: The proposed noise buffer would impact new businesses in the commercial zone along Highway 191 which runs through Moab. Grand County

// Proposed ordinance and new overlay district before the Grand County Planning Commission

https://grandcountyut.portal.civicclerk.com/event/30/overview?fbclid=IwAR1-Af_x3dyzBQkvL-sRIzKya5VhOHW7qveGrmL3xvruSPWMC9yVbNF2Y-U

// Salt Lake Tribune: Cox admin spares Moab’s historic Woody’s Tavern, but Robert Gehrke argues Utah liquor policy is still broken

https://www.sltrib.com/opinion/2022/11/28/cox-admin-spares-moabs-historic/

// KUNC: The Colorado River Compact turns 100 years old. Is it still working?

https://www.kunc.org/environment/2022-11-23/the-colorado-river-compact-turns-100-years-old-is-it-still-working

This spring, after local workers camping on private property were threatened with eviction, Grand County lawmakers had to make a decision. Enforce their no camping rule and kick people out – or create a legal pathway for those workers to stay. They chose the latter. Today on the news, the alternative dwelling overlay ordinance is here. Plus, Republican US Congresswoman Lauren Boebert says she’s been unfairly blamed for a mass shooting in Colorado. And later, the EPA will further reduce methane pollution from oil and gas drilling and new e-bike restrictions are taking effect.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Vans camped out on private property in an area known colloquially as ‘the swamp.’ Local guides living here may now have a legal pathway to stay. KZMU

// Alternative Dwelling Overlay Application

https://www.grandcountyutah.net/DocumentCenter/View/15139/ADO-Rezone_Tip-Sheet

// Alternative Dwelling Overlay Ordinance

https://www.grandcountyutah.net/DocumentCenter/View/15144/Ordinance-668

// Moab Sun News: Commission passes alternative dwelling ordinance

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/11/17/commission-passes-alternative-dwelling-ordinance/

// EPA Methane Update:

https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/biden-harris-administration-strengthens-proposal-cut-methane-pollution-protect?fbclid=IwAR00Vl619pLl19tHrqKGHwXFupy49aRlIiRaDDLciJ9P-IQNDh_Mt19XUIo

// UPR: New e-bike restrictions take effect in wildlife and waterfowl management areas

https://www.upr.org/utah-news/2022-11-18/new-e-bike-restrictions-take-effect-in-wildlife-and-waterfowl-management-areas

Hi listener. The holiday season is upon us, which means you can expect some special programming occasionally in the interest of taking a little rest. Like today! We are rebroadcasting the first issue of Great Tape, an audio magazine from KZMU News. Each show will have a different theme explored from a variety of perspectives.

We are at work on our second issue! The theme is NEIGHBORHOOD. If you want to contribute to that project, please reach out to [email protected].

Now, to our first-ever issue of Great Tape. The theme here was OFF TO THE RACES. In this episode we jump from one daily race to another in Moab — following a baker, newspaper editor, delivery man and nursing-home resident. We also have stories about political races, the race to exterminate an invasive plant and the race to put goods on our shelves. And we have fiction and music! We have a radio drama about Moab’s only Uber driver, an excerpt from a book about discovering the West and a song about deep time and the imperceptible natural rhythms of our environment. Enjoy.

// Find detailed show notes here: https://www.kzmu.org/great-tape-off-to-the-races/

Colorado author Erika Wurth has written novels, short stories, poetry and non-fiction. Her latest book, White Horse, is a piece of literary horror that explores themes of loss and identity through the lens of a protagonist who, like Wurth, is an urban Indian. Today on the news, a conversation with Wurth about writing contemporary Native American fiction and being part of a new wave of Indigenous literature. Plus, the Park City Lift Maintenance Professional Union has formed, and it's the first of its kind in the country. And later, the effort to unionize Starbucks workers arrived in Boulder, Colorado.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Erika Wurth spoke about her new novel, White Horse, at the Boulder Bookstore in mid-November. Maeve Conran/ Rocky Mountain Community Radio

// Aspen Public Radio: Colorado author Erika Wurth is part of a new wave of Indigenous literature

https://www.aspenpublicradio.org/2022-11-18/denver-author-erika-wurth-is-part-of-a-new-wave-of-indigenous-literature

// KPCW: Park City Mountain ski lift mechanics unionize - a first in U.S.

https://www.kpcw.org/park-city/2022-11-22/park-city-mountain-ski-lift-mechanics-vote-to-form-union?utm_source=The+Local+from+KPCW&utm_campaign=9990f736f3-THELOCAL_EMAIL&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_51e5d20ffa-9990f736f3-619617003

// Starbucks Workers United

https://sbworkersunited.org

The designation of Bears Ears as a national monument aims to conserve the area’s dramatic landscape. But there’s another characteristic which the Bears Ears Intertribal Coalition is pushing to protect – the monument’s soundscape. Plus, the LGBTQ community nationwide continues to mourn after a shooting at a gay night club in Colorado Springs over the weekend. We hear thoughts from Xavi Saenz, the founder of Delta Pride.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Bears Ears National Monument in the fall. A proposed management plan by the Bears Ears Intertribal Coalition says the “sounds of nature should remain pristine.” KZMU/Justin Higginbottom

// National Park Service Policy on Natural Sounds

https://www.nps.gov/subjects/sound/policy.htm

// Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition: A Collaborative Land Management Plan for the Bears Ears National Monument

https://www.bearsearscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/FINAL_BENM_LMP_08252022.pdf

// Ecological Society of America: Anthropogenic noise in US national parks – sources and spatial extent

https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fee.2112

// Science: Noise pollution is pervasive in US protected areas

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aah4783

// Trevor Project

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/?c_src=UCGOF220010250&c_src2=dt-2022-c-Google-CPC&gclid=CjwKCAiApvebBhAvEiwAe7mHSMJWuHLlps_e0nCbbLg2qTvdsh8M81gHEPbZ4A8_SWHfBvPTA8sw_RoCmEwQAvD_BwE

If you are in crisis, you can reach out to the Trevor Lifeline by calling 1-866-488-7386

Locals in need of a Thanksgiving meal can get one delivered to their doorstep again this year from WabiSabi. When new director Leah Bear took the helm of the organization just a few months ago, she says it’s the first thing people asked her about. “Just knowing the importance of it, I wanted to be a part of that and wanted to make sure that it continued.” Plus, the Utah Food Bank is responding to what it calls record levels of need for food assistance across the state. And later, a few reports on the aftermath of the shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs from our regional radio partners.

// Show Notes:

// To request a Thanksgiving meal from WabiSabi, call them at 435-259-3313 or email [email protected]

// Utah Food Bank

https://www.utahfoodbank.org

// Colorado Healing Fund

https://www.coloradohealingfund.org

// The Trevor Project

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/

If you are in crisis, you can reach out to the Trevor Lifeline by calling 1-866-488-7386

If you drove down Kane Creek Boulevard over the weekend you might have seen signs for a “Cave Sale.” It’s what it sounds like — a very Moab take on a weekend yard sale. The caves on the bank of this stretch of the Colorado River have drawn drivers’ gaze for decades. They’re a quirky part of Moab’s history. We visited the sale to learn more. Plus, a mass shooting at a gay night club in Colorado Springs over the weekend took the lives of five people and left at least 25 others wounded. Authorities suspect the horrific incident was a hate crime. And early-season storms have left snow totals above average throughout much of the Western U.S. — including Utah.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Until recently the Walden family owned this stretch of land on the Colorado River where a number of caves are located. (KZMU)

// Music: South of the Border by Jason Shaw

// Moab Sun News: Kane Creek development leads to evictions: Developers promise community benefit, but first, tenants must leave

https://moabsunnews.com/2021/10/29/kane-creek-development-leads-to-evictions-developers-promise-community-benefit-but-first-tenants-must-leave/

// KDNK: Five dead after horrific assault on gay nightclub in Colorado Springs

https://www.kdnk.org/local-news/2022-11-21/five-dead-after-horrific-assault-on-gay-club-in-colorado-springs

// Utah Snow Survey Program

https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/wcc/home/quicklinks/states/utah/

At 20 years old, Everett Ruess disappeared. It was 1934 and Ruess was on a long journey of self-discovery into canyons around Escalante, Utah. He’s become well-known for what he left behind – essays, poetry and artwork. A collection of his block prints is currently on display at the Moab Museum, tracing his wanderings from the California coast to the desert southwest. Today on the news, we speak to a local artist who says Ruess’ work still has meaning for contemporary creators.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Doug McMurdo of The Times-Independent discusses a 1973 cold case being re-opened by the Moab Police Department, Grand’s approval of an alternative-dwelling plan and SkyWest flight security breaches at Canyonlands Field Regional Airport. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News talks about the potential closure of the World Famous Woody’s Tavern due to a minor code violation. She also discusses a new community garden next to WabiSabi thrift store and a profile of artist Sam Metzner.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Printing workshops and other Everett-Ruess inspired creative opportunities will be held in partnership with the Moab Museum this winter. The workshops are in conjunction with an exhibit of the young artists’ block prints.

// Moab Museum: Block Prints By Everett Ruess

https://moabmuseum.org/exhibit/ruess-block-prints/

// Music is ‘Time to Live’ by Dan Bern

https://danbern.bandcamp.com/track/wilderness-song

// Weekly News Reel Mentions:

// The Times-Independent: New MPD detective heats up cold case

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/new-mpd-detective-heats-up-cold-case/

// The Times-Independent: County approves alt-dwelling plan

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/county-approves-alt-dwelling-plan/

// The Times-Independent: Short on staff, SkyWest flight security breaches spotted by TSA

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/short-on-staff-skywest-flight-security-breaches-spotted-by-tsa/

// Moab Sun News: Woody’s faces forfeiture of license

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/11/17/woodys-faces-forfeiture-of-license/

// Moab Sun News: “The world is nothing without art”

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/11/17/the-world-is-nothing-without-art/

// Moab Sun News: Community Gardens builds new plot - New garden located next to WabiSabi

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/11/17/community-gardens-builds-new-plot-new-garden-located-next-to-wabisabi/