KZMU News

In the weeks leading up to the election, social media has been buzzing with allegations that so-called ‘outside influences’ are affecting politics in Grand and San Juan Counties. San Juan’s former county attorney is now using his social media platform to get the attention of the state’s attorney general. It’s stirred up a controversy long-simmering in the background of local politics. Today on the news, we speak with Salt Lake Tribune reporter Brian Maffly, who’s spent his career writing about complicated issues in southern Utah – like this one.

// Show Notes:

// Salt Lake Tribune: Is SUWA too cozy with county commissions?

https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2022/11/02/is-suwa-too-cozy-with-county/

A seed conservation group is keeping crops historically farmed in the Southwest alive. And in persistent drought, their arid-adapted strains have never been more popular. Plus, a public memorial and reflection took place last month in Colorado to explore the truth of Boulder’s role in The Sand Creek Massacre. The event came days after the announcement of a significant expansion of the national historic site in southeastern Colorado.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Shannon Boomgarden, director of the Range Creek Field Station, surveys a corn crop she farms and irrigates using Fremont methods. KZMU

// Native Seeds Search

https://www.nativeseeds.org/

// Range Creek Field Station

https://nhmu.utah.edu/range-creek-field-station

// Aspen Public Radio: Remembering 1864: From Fort Chambers to Sand Creek

https://www.aspenpublicradio.org/government/2022-10-07/remembering-1864-from-fort-chambers-to-sand-creek

Women hold a lot of top jobs in Moab, from leading local business to nonprofits and even public office. Running and serving in the political sphere as a woman comes with its own set of challenges. Today on the news, we have an audio essay about women in Utah politics. Plus, lawmakers in Colorado have signed a petition to support overturning a decision authorizing the construction of the Uinta Basin Railway. And, the Interior Department is looking to cut back the amount of water released from the nation’s largest reservoirs starting next year.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Audio essayist Holly Lammert (left) with Carey Dabney of the Southeast Utah League of Women Voters. When it comes to politics, Dabney advises, ‘just keep showing up.’

// (2022) Utah Women & Leadership: The Status of Women in Utah Politics

https://www.usu.edu/uwlp/files/briefs/41-status-of-women-in-utah-politics-2022.pdf

// KZMU News: Women in Leadership Audio Essay, Story 1

https://www.kzmu.org/monday-may-16-2022/

For twelve years, the Moab Valley Multicultural Center has brought people together to honor and celebrate their deceased loved ones. The local Day of the Dead Festival has become an important Moab tradition, incorporating religious and cultural traditions of Latin America. Today on the news, we have an audio postcard of this year’s event. Plus, our region is home to an old building where many people say they have experienced unusual phenomena. Our radio partners visited the site with a paranormal investigation crew to learn about possible spirits that may have stuck around.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Ofrendas at the Moab Valley Multicultural Center’s Day of the Dead Festival. The event brings people of all cultural and religious backgrounds together to honor deceased loved ones.

// Moab Valley Multicultural Center

https://moabmc.org

// Boise State Public Radio: Nighttime paranormal investigations lead dozens to the Old Idaho Penitentiary

https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/science-research/2022-10-31/nighttime-paranormal-investigations-lead-dozens-to-the-old-idaho-penitentiary

Ongoing drought conditions mean farmers in our region may need innovative ways to grow crops using less water. In Blanding, the family running Cinco Cedros Farms is trying to do just that with aquaponics. But, this unique type of farming doesn’t always go swimmingly. Plus, a Utah artist has created a sound collage representing the timeline of the Great Salt Lake, including its potential collapse. And later, as climate change pushes animals to compete for resources, one study asks who wins when mountain goats and bighorn sheep butt heads.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Sophia Fisher of The Times-Independent discusses the high school’s championship mountain biking team, the county’s response to an OHV-related lawsuit, understaffing at Moab’s post office and the BLM reopening the Mill Canyon tracksite. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News discusses continued election coverage, outdoor education programs expanding in our area and free public transportation beginning next year. And, the Sun reports 'what happened at the meeting.'

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Jessica Stevens runs Cinco Cedro Farms where she grows vegetables in an aquaponic system. That method uses a fraction of the water needed in terrestrial farming. KZMU/Justin Higginbottom

// Cinco Cedro Farms:

https://www.instagram.com/cincocedrosfarms/?hl=af and https://www.facebook.com/cincocedros.farms.9

// Utah DWR: Raising your own fish for food

https://wildlife.utah.gov/aquaponics.html

// KUER: A Utah artist imagines the life of the Great Salt Lake from birth to the brink

https://www.kuer.org/health-science-environment/2022-10-18/a-utah-artist-imagines-the-life-of-the-great-salt-lake-from-birth-to-the-brink

// Weekly News Reel Mentions:

// The Times-Independent: State Champs – Where there’s a wheel there’s a way

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/where-theres-a-wheel-theres-a-way/

// The Times-Independent: County responds to OHV lawsuit

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/county-responds-to-ohv-lawsuit/

// The Times-Independent: Some Moab residences lack daily mail service

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/some-moab-residences-lack-daily-mail-service/

// The Times-Independent: BLM reopens Mill Canyon tracksite

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/blm-reopens-mill-canyon-tracksite/

// Moab Sun News: Local election guide – County attorney

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/27/local-election-guide-county-attorney/

// Moab Sun News: Local election guide – County sheriff

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/27/local-election-guide-county-sheriff/

// Moab Sun News: Local election guide – Fire commissioner

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/27/local-election-guide-fire-commissioner/

// Moab Sun News: Recreation outreach and education programs expand in the Moab area

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/27/recreation-outreach-and-education-programs-expand-in-the-moab-area/

// Moab Sun News: Free public transportation expected to begin service early next year

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/27/free-public-transportation-expected-to-begin-service-early-next-year/

Steve Waller studies sound reverberations at rock art sites around the world. He calls the field archaeoacoustics. And he theorizes many sites, including here in Utah, were chosen because of their ability to reflect sound. Waller also applies his research to local mythologies, from ancient Europe to the Hopi, and finds that images can correlate with echo myths. Plus, cities across the country — but especially in Colorado’s Front Range - are experiencing a housing crisis as rent outpaces wages. That's led to an increase in homelessness and stricter laws to punish activities associated with not having a home. This criminalization tends to funnel homeless into jail or the court system. But Boulder is trying a different approach — community court.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: The 'Kachina Petroglyph Panel' is seen near Mexican Hat, Utah. Steve Waller has found acoustic peculiarities at cliff faces with rock art near the San Juan River. (Steve Waller)

// Steve Waller: Rock Art Acoustics

https://sites.google.com/site/rockartacoustics/

// Source New Mexico: Preserving the Natural Sonic Environment in Bears Ears

https://sourcenm.com/2022/09/07/preserving-the-natural-sonic-environment-in-bears-ears/

// Boulder Reporting Lab: Boulder’s Community Court Has Dismissed Hundreds of Nonviolent Charges Related to Homelessness

https://boulderreportinglab.org/2022/03/04/boulders-community-court-dismissed-nonviolent-charges-homelessness/

Moab’s new Chief of Police, Jared Garcia, laid out a strategic plan that will guide the department through 2025. The Moab City Police Department has experienced turmoil in the recent past. A large part of the strategic plan includes elevating the department’s professionalism, from staff education and training to public communication. Plus, the Ute Mountain Ute tribe in White Mesa protested a radioactive waste dump and other activities at a nearby uranium mill on Saturday. And later, a longstanding program of artificial floods to save the Grand Canyon’s beaches now faces an uncertain future.

// Show Notes:

// Moab Police Department Strategic Plan 2022-2025

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cov5_kAtXcw

The Red Canyon Powwow returned for the second year at the Old Spanish Trail Arena over the weekend. Indigenous dancers from all over the region competed in a number of events, including old style, contemporary and jingle dancing. Organizers say the Powwow is intended build community across cultures over dancing, food and music. Plus, the US Supreme Court will decide the constitutionality of a decades-old law intended to stop the separation of Indigenous children and their families. Plus, droughts in the US are developing more quickly than they used to according to a new report.

// Photo: Dancers of all ages competed at the Red Canyon Powwow held at the Old Spanish Trail Arena over the weekend. Courtesy Jon Kovash

The Moab Science Festival held events over the weekend giving locals and visitors a look at some of the fascinating fields studied in our region — including paleontology. In the last few decades, discoveries of dinosaur tracks have put Moab on the map. Plus, we have a preview of Tuesday's Moab City Council meeting. And in 2017, Colorado’s San Miguel County planted its first pollinator garden in collaboration with the Xerces Society, an organization working to promote international pollinator health. Our partners visited the garden.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Paleontologist Rebecca Hunt-Foster stands next to a dinosaur print at the Mill Canyon Dinosaur Tracksite near Moab. (KZMU)

// Mill Canyon Dinosaur Trailhead Interpretive Site

https://www.blm.gov/visit/mill-canyon-dinosaur-trailhead-interpretive-site

// Utah Friends of Paleontology

https://utahpaleo.org/

// Moab City Council Agenda

https://moabcity.org/AgendaCenter/City-Council-1

// KOTO: In Placerville, Pollinators Prepare for Winter

https://www.koto.org/featured-news-stories/2022/10/18/in-placerville-pollinators-prepare-for-winter

Ballots were mailed to all active and registered voters in Grand County this week. Voters will be making decisions on federal, state and local races. We checked in with Grand County Clerk Gabriel Woytek on what happens next, and how their office ensures a safe election process.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Doug McMurdo of The Times-Independent discusses local elections, the property tax spike and county grant awards to local businesses. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News talks election coverage, a recent training from the Children’s Justice Center, the community-supported ‘fun fund’ and a roadshow collecting memories of war.

// Show Notes:

// Have election related questions in Grand County? Contact the Clerk’s Office! Phone: 435-259-1321, Email: [email protected], Address: 125 East Center Street, Moab UT

// Voter Registration Safeguards

https://voteinfo.utah.gov/safe/voter-registration-safeguards/

// Voting Equipment Safeguards

https://voteinfo.utah.gov/safe/voting-equipment-safeguards/

// Ballot Processing Safeguards

https://voteinfo.utah.gov/safe/ballot-processing-safeguards/

// Voter Responsibility Safeguards

https://voteinfo.utah.gov/safe/voter-responsibility-safeguards/

// Grand County Sample Ballot

https://www.grandcountyutah.net/DocumentCenter/View/14714/Grand-County-Sample-Ballot-General-Election

// Weekly News Reel Mentions:

// The Times-Independent: Lyman, Smith debate brings out voters

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/lyman-smith-debate-brings-out-voters/

// The Times-Independent: Debate lays bare stark contrast between Campbell, Winfield

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/debate-lays-bare-stark-contrast-between-campbell-winfield/

// The Times-Independent: Property tax spike leaves some residents in the lurch

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/property-tax-spike-leaves-some-residents-in-the-lurch/

// The Times-Independent: County awards $609K in STAR grants

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/county-awards-609k-in-star-grants/

// Moab Sun News: Local Election Guide – District 5, Mike McCurdy and Steve Getz

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/20/local-election-guide-district-5-mike-mccurdy-and-steve-getz/

// Moab Sun News: Local Election Guide – District 4, Lori McFarland and Mary McGann

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/20/local-election-guide-district-4-lori-mcfarland-and-mary-mcgann/

// Moab Sun News: Local Election Guide – At-Large, Emily Campbell and Bill Winfield

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/20/local-election-guide-at-large-emily-campbell-and-bill-winfield/

// Moab Sun News: Recognizing signs of abuse

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/20/recognizing-signs-of-abuse/

// Moab Sun News: Helping kids make memories – Community-supported ‘Fun Fund’ sends Grand County kids to camp

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/20/fun-fund-sends-grand-county-kids-to-camp/

// Moab Sun News: ‘Bringing War Home’ project comes to Moab

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/20/bringing-war-home-project-comes-to-moab/