KZMU News

This week on the Regional Roundup, we hear about an art exhibit in Durango, Colorado, that centers Indigenous and Latinx artists. Then, we hear from Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, who spoke last month in Aspen about a new initiative aimed at advancing equality through women’s sports. We also travel to southeast Utah to learn how the ancient craft of flint knapping is being preserved and passed down to a new generation. And we wrap up in Denver hearing about two museums dedicated to preserving Black American history.

Today on the News Reel, we speak to Andrew Christiansen, reporter at the Times-Independent, about a recent lawsuit filed against the Lieutenant Governor’s office and developers of the Echo Canyon development over their status as a preliminary municipality. We also discuss the cleanup effort at the UMTRA site in Moab, which finally relocated all 16 million tons of uranium waste to Crescent Junction.

Having a reliable well is the only way a lot of people can live in rural Utah. But digging a well can be an expensive gamble. You could spend thousands to hire a hydrologist to point you in the right direction. Or, for a fraction of the price, you could hire a water witch. Today we speak to Jim Brandt, an excavation contractor and dowser who uses brass rods and a handsaw to "witch" for the perfect place to dig. In his 40-year career, he’s only dug two dry wells.

This week on the Regional Roundup, we hear how national tensions around immigration enforcement are playing out in Wyoming. We visit a tiny mountain community in western Colorado that has worked to provide services for its senior residents, and we round out the show with a conversation about the recent ski patrol strike in Telluride and how it continues to impact the community.

Today on the News Reel, we speak to Andrew Christiansen, reporter at the Times-Independent, about the region’s record-low snowpack this winter. We also discuss Grand County’s $60,000 study into the timed entry system at Arches National Park. And we close with an update about a possible new air service contract at the airport.

- Show Notes -

• Utah snowpack hits worst levels on record

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/its-horrible-utah-snowpack-hits-worst-levels-on-record/

• Arches timed entry economic study delayed

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/arches-timed-entry-economic-study-delayed/

• Grand County hires consultant to explore airline options for Canyonlands Regional Airport

https://www.moabtimes.com/articles/grand-county-hires-consultant-to-explore-airline-options-for-canyonlands-regional-airport/

Negotiators from the seven Colorado River Basin states will likely miss a crucial deadline this weekend to submit a new plan for how to divide the dwindling water source. Without an agreement, the federal government retains the right to impose a contract on the states. The Feb. 14 deadline comes as the region faces record-low snowpack coupled with unusually warm temperatures this winter.

- Show Notes -

• USDA Snow Water Equivalent Map

https://nwcc-apps.sc.egov.usda.gov/imap/#version=2&elements=&networks=!&states=!&counties=!&hucs=&minElevation=&maxElevation=&elementSelectType=any&activeOnly=true&activeForecastPointsOnly=true&hucLabels=false&hucIdLabels=false&hucParameterLabels=true&stationLabels=&overlays=&hucOverlays=&basinOpacity=75&basinNoDataOpacity=25&basemapOpacity=100&maskOpacity=0&mode=data&openSections=dataElement,parameter,date,basin,options,elements,location,networks&controlsOpen=true&popup=&popupMulti=&popupBasin=&base=esriNgwm&displayType=station&basinType=6&dataElement=WTEQ&depth=-8¶meter=PCTMED&frequency=DAILY&duration=I&customDuration=&dayPart=E&monthPart=E&forecastPubDay=1&forecastExceedance=50&useMixedPast=true&seqColor=1&divColor=7&scaleType=D&scaleMin=&scaleMax=&referencePeriodType=POR&referenceBegin=1991&referenceEnd=2020&minimumYears=20&hucAssociations=true&relativeDate=-1&lat=42.300&lon=-114.300&zoom=4.5

This week on the Regional Roundup, we bring you voices from ICE protests held across the region, along with reporting on Native Americans who say they’ve been stopped, and in some cases detained, by immigration agents. We also look at growing concern in Indigenous communities over the possibility that Congress could overturn the current resource management plan for Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument. Plus, we hear from an Aspen athlete headed to the Winter Olympics in Italy to compete in ski mountaineering, and we wrap up the show with the story of a radio play performed by students in Telluride.

Today on the News Reel, we speak to Doug McMurdo, editor at the Times-Independent, about the ICE protest that took place in Moab last week. We also discuss a recent state audit of a former USU president who spent nearly $300,000 dollars renovating her office. And we finish with a quick update about funding for CFI’s youth program.

Today we speak to Greg Nunn, a master flintknapper from Castle Valley who crafts stone tools using an ancient technique. We discuss the ways he’s preserving, documenting and passing on the tradition and what the practice means to him personally. This episode is part of a KZMU series that highlights people in our community who are keeping Southwestern traditions alive. You can find more stories in this series on KZMU.org.

- Show Notes -

• Greg Nunn Flintknapping

https://gregnunnflintworks.com/

• Photo: Greg Nunn chips away at a knife with an antler. Photo by Emily Arntsen/KZMU.

This week on the Regional Roundup, we'll hear about the formation of a new federal agency: the U.S. Wildland Fire Service, and a report on so-called “death cards” found in abandoned vehicles following rumored ICE activity near Vail, Colorado. We’ll also check in on an avalanche training program in Wyoming, and efforts underway to reintroduce wolverines to Colorado. Plus, a look at the dismantling of a beloved gathering place for some locals in Moab by the Bureau of Land Management, and we wrap up the show in Park City with a look at the Sundance Film Festival, the final year the festival will call Utah home before moving to Boulder, Colorado, next year.