KZMU News

On Wednesday, the middle school gym transformed into a science lab, complete with miniature flying drones, homemade robots, dinosaur bones and screaming quarters. These science experiments and demonstrations – aka ‘STEMonstrations’ – kicked off the Moab Festival of Science. And, activists from the Ute Mountain Ute tribe in White Mesa are leading a rally and spiritual walk this weekend. Plus, Arizona’s Gila River Indian Community announced plans to conserve a significant amount of its water supplies and the Interior Department will fund ecosystem conservation and pollution clean-up work.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: STEMonstration participants use their elbows to listen to the vibrations of arches, played through a special ‘bone speaker’ at Science Moab’s booth. The event kicked off the Moab Festival of Science. KZMU

// Moab Festival of Science 2022 Schedule

https://moab-scifest.org/2022-festival-schedule/

// KZMU Donate

https://www.kzmu.org/give/

The Grand County Commission has approved funding to study salinity levels in the Matheson Wetlands Preserve. There’s brine — salty water from the Paradox Formation — under a layer of fresh water in that area. Researchers want to know whether using more water in the valley changes that water-brine boundary. Plus, Grand County is denying claims that staff and elected officials illegally attempted to regulate ATVs off the streets. Nonprofit BlueRibbon Coalition and 12 local businesses allege they’re owed $1 million in damages after the county and city revised noise and business regulations. Grand County’s attorney says their lawsuit contains outdated information. And a new report shows that Wyoming is home to the largest intact sagebrush habitat in the West.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: A saltier wetlands won’t only have an impact on wildlife and vegetation in the area. But it could also contribute to the salinization of the Colorado River. (KZMU)

// USGS Salinity Study Brief

https://www.grandcountyutah.net/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/725?fileID=42435

// Utah Geological Survey Groundwater and Wetlands Program Proposed Matheson Wetlands Preserve Monitoring

https://www.grandcountyutah.net/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/744?fileID=42474

// BlueRibbon Coalition Lawsuit

https://www.sharetrails.org/blueribbon-coalition-files-lawsuit-against-grand-county-and-moab-city/

// Grand County Response to BlueRibbon Coalition Lawsuit:

https://www.kzmu.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/County-Answer-eFILED-10.17.22.pdf

// KHOL: Grand Teton National Park restoring native sagebrush to create wildlife habitat

https://891khol.org/grand-teton-national-park-restoring-native-sagebrush-to-create-wildlife-habitat-support-migrations/

Today, we once again have something special! The 2022 Candidate Debates with those running for Grand County Commission and State House District 69. Hosted by KZMU with support from the Southeast Utah League of Women Voters, this event broadcast live on Monday, October 17th from the Moab Arts and Recreation Center. Hear from candidates on a variety of issues including water, housing, elections and more!

// District 5 (3:00)Steve Getz & Mike McCurdy, District 4 (32:00)Lori McFarland & Mary McGann, At-Large (1:06:00)Emily Campbell & Bill Winfield, House District 69 (1:52:00) Phil Lyman & Davina Smith

// Election Day is Tuesday, November 8th. Registered voters should be receiving their ballot by mail the week of October 17th. You can still register to vote online at vote.utah.gov or in person at the Grand County Clerk’s Office, 125 East Center Street.

// Music in this piece is 'Silky' by Alex Figueria

Moab had a very special visit by theater troupe Bread and Puppet this weekend. They rolled into town in a painted school bus for their 30th stop on a three-and-a-half month tour across the country. Plus, a Navajo seedkeeper is preserving and sharing the foods of his ancestors with customers online. And we have a preview of this week's Grand County Commission meeting.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Bread and Puppet was started by legendary artist Peter Schumann during the 60s counterculture movement in New York’s Lower East Side. The name comes from Schumann’s attitude that theater is as necessary as bread. KZMU

// Bread and Puppet Theater

https://breadandpuppet.org/

// KSUT: A Navajo seedkeeper shares his ancestors’ food with the world

https://www.ksut.org/2022-10-14/a-navajo-seedkeeper-shares-his-ancestors-food-with-the-world

// Grand County Commission agenda

https://www.grandcountyutah.net/134/County-Commission

// Moab Sun News

https://moabsunnews.com/

Listeners, it’s radiothon! And here at the newscast we take this opportunity to reflect on the stories and projects we've been working on for the past few months. KZMU News team Molly Marcello and Justin Higginbottom spoke with executive director Serah Mead live from downtown Moab about their reporting and the uniqueness of community radio.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Sophia Fisher of The Times-Independent talks ultramarathon running, election coverage, Arches’ entrance closures and a new hire at the Moab City Police Department. Maggie McGuire of the Moab Sun News discusses visioning at Moab City, a Walnut Lane resident survey and recent sexual assault trainings for law enforcement.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: (from left) KZMU News team Justin Higginbottom and Molly Marcello with executive director Serah Mead. Credit Glenn Kincaid

// KZMU Donate

https://www.kzmu.org/give/

// Weekly News Reel Mentions:

// The Times-Independent: 240 miles through the Moab desert

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/240-miles-through-the-moab-desert/

// The Times-Independent: Attorney, sheriff candidates spar at debate

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/attorney-sheriff-candidates-spar-at-debate/

// The Times-Independent: Arches is closing its gates – again

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/arches-is-closing-its-gates-again/

// The Times-Independent: New MPD sergeant brings policy expertise

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/new-mpd-sergeant-brings-policy-expertise/

// Moab Sun News: Moab City defines future vision

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/13/moab-city-defines-future-vision/

// Moab Sun News: At Walnut Lane, current tenants want to stay

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/13/at-walnut-lane-current-tenants-want-to-stay/

// Moab Sun News: Understanding trauma

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/13/understanding-trauma/

// Moab Sun News: Ambitious goals for Moab police department

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/13/ambitious-goals-for-moab-police-department/

Fall and tourist season has arrived in Moab. And something else has returned — Arches National Park entry closures. The park has reached capacity every day since it ended a pilot reservation program on October 4th. Plus, the annual John Denver Celebration hit a 25-year milestone in Aspen, Colorado, this week, just before the anniversary of the singer’s death on October 12, 1997. But the gathering in this town that Denver once called home could soon be changing as participants get older and the local hotel that hosts them changes hands.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: The park service is sifting through data on their timed-entry pilot program. If Arches brings it back they will be joining only a handful of national parks in the country with a similar system. (KZMU)

// Arches National Park alerts

https://www.nps.gov/arch/planyourvisit/conditions.htm

// Aspen Public Radio: Country roads converge again for 'family reunion' at John Denver Celebration in Aspen

https://www.aspenpublicradio.org/arts-culture/2022-10-12/at-the-john-denver-celebration-in-aspen-a-family-reunion-shares-the-joy-of-denvers-music

// Support KZMU News

https://www.kzmu.org/give/

Findings from the "Moab - Tomorrow Together" vision and action plan were presented to Moab City Council yesterday. That report comes from community surveys, workshops and focus groups that began in January. The results show locals are concerned about being left behind as the area continues to develop for tourism — but also full of ideas to help shape their community. Plus, a Western Slope state legislator is asking the U.S District Court to impose the maximum penalty in a “body brokering” case against Sunset Mesa Funeral home in Montrose, Colorado. Hundreds of families, including here in Moab, were impacted by the federal crime that forced legislators to change Colorado law.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: The ‘Moab – Tomorrow Together’ report shows residents want a ‘locally driven future.’ (KZMU)

// Moab City Council October 11th meeting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqT8SaCJPNQ

// Draft of ‘Moab – Tomorrow Together’

https://moabcity.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/5259?fileID=6214

// The Times-Independent: Moab family questions practices of Montrose funeral home

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/moab-family-questions-practices-of-montrose-funeral-home/

Today, we have something special! The 2022 Candidate Debates with those running for Grand County Attorney and Grand County Sheriff. Hosted by KZMU and ACLU Utah with support from the Southeast Utah League of Women Voters, this event broadcast live on Monday, October 10th from the Moab Arts and Recreation Center. Hear from county attorney candidates Christina Sloan and Stephen Stocks on issues including alternatives to incarceration, lawsuits, and community collaboration. Listen to sheriff candidates Curt Brewer and Jamison Wiggins talk about transparency, emergency management, noise enforcement and more.

// Election Day is Tuesday, November 8th. Registered voters should be receiving their ballot by mail the week of October 17th. You can still register to vote online at vote.utah.gov or in person at the Grand County Clerk’s Office, 125 East Center Street.

// Music in this piece is 'Silky' by Alex Figueria

KZMU News recently released our first issue of an audio magazine we’re calling Great Tape. The theme of that show was “Off to the Races.” And during the program we checked in on personal races happening every week in Moab. One of those is the race to physically get Moab the news. After the Times-Independent prints the paper on their very own press, it’s delivered across town by people like AJ Long. For Long, newspaper distribution is a family business. Plus, Election Day is November 8th and Utah election officials say it isn't too early for voters to start making a plan for casting their ballots. Our partners report on how Utahns feel about voting by mail. And we have a preview of this week's Moab City Council meeting.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: AJ Long has been delivering the Times-Independent around Moab every Wednesday for nearly two decades. KZMU

// Great Tape: Off to the Races

https://www.kzmu.org/great-tape-off-to-the-races/

// Public News Service: Mail-In Ballots Remain Popular Among Utah Voters

https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2022-10-03/civic-engagement/mail-in-ballots-remain-popular-among-utah-voters/a80862-1

// Moab City Council Agenda

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

// Moab Sun News

https://moabsunnews.com/

// Donate to KZMU

https://www.kzmu.org/give/

There’s a canyon in the Book Cliffs managed by the Natural History Museum, where researchers do experimental archeology. Over 500 archeological sites have been found among this high-elevation oasis in the desert, mostly from the Fremont civilization. The Range Creek Field Station has become a kind of outdoor laboratory, where researchers use ancient techniques to better understand how people may have lived here 1,000 years ago.

// Plus, the Weekly News Reel! Doug McMurdo of The Times-Independent discusses this year’s monsoon season being ‘exactly what we needed,’ new Assistant Moab City Police Chief Lex Bell, and Leah Bear taking the helm at nonprofit WabiSabi. Alison Harford of the Moab Sun News talks travel management planning in the Labyrinth Canyon/Gemini Bridges area, a Q&A with the BLM’s new district manager Nicollee Gaddis-Wyatt, and artist Julia Buckwalter’s exhibit exploring desert conservation. And, the Moab Sun News tells us what happened at this week’s Grand County Commission meeting.

// Show Notes:

// Photo: Shannon Boomgarden, director of the Range Creek Field Station. Justin Higginbottom/KZMU

// Natural History Museum of Utah: Range Creek Field Station

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

// Music in ‘What Happened At The Meeting’ is ‘Paris Gypsy Swing’ by Dieter van der Westen

// Weekly News Reel Mentions:

// The Times-Independent: Monsoon was ‘exactly what we needed’

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/monsoon-was-exactly-what-we-needed/

// The Times-Independent: New MPD 2nd in command brings energy, professionalism

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/new-mpd-2nd-in-command-brings-energy-professionalism/

// The Times-Independent: Leah Bear takes the helm at WabiSabi

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/leah-bear-takes-the-helm-at-wabisabi/

// The Times-Independent: Curt Brewer brings more than 40 years’ experience

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/curt-brewer-brings-more-than-40-years/

// The Times-Independent: Jamison Wiggins wants to bring ‘new level of excellence’ at GCSO

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/curt-brewer-brings-more-than-40-years/

// Moab Sun News: Walking and wheeling – What is a balanced approach?

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/06/labyrinth-canyon-gemini-bridges-travel-management-plan/

// Moab Sun News: Q&A with BLM District Manager Nicollee Gaddis-Wyatt

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/06/qa-with-blm-director/

// Moab Sun News: Julia Buckwalter exhibit explores desert conservation

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/10/06/julia-buckwalter-exhibit-explores-desert-conservation/