The
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Serving Wayne & Garfield Counties, Utah
LOA • FREmONT • LYmAN • BICkNELL • TEASDALE • TORREY • GROvER • FRUITA • CAINEvILLE • HANkSvILLE PANGUITCH • PANGUITCH LAkE • HATCH • ANTImONY • BRYCE • TROPIC • HENRIEvILLE • CANNONvILLE • ESCALANTE • BOULDER
Thursday, May 16, 2019
Issue # 1307
SCC Passes Milestone With Fiber Project
Boulder Plannng Commission May 9
Prevention Coalition Donates New Tent to the Panguitch Bobcats Track Team
More than 50% of customers now have Gigabit-capable Fiber Internet
KANAB - South Central Communications (SCC) has passed a considerable milestone in bringing fiber-fed Internet to their service area. SCC recently announced that over half of all customers in their regulated exchanges are now using advanced Gigabitcapable Fiber Internet. To date, South Central Communications has brought this state-of-the-art fiber network to 13 local communities, with six more planned for 2019. They’ve invested over $30 million bringing fiber optics to every home, business, school, library, and Fiber Project Cont'd on page 3
by tessa Barkan
Courtesy Jake sChoppe
PANGUITCH - The Panguitch Bobcats track team poses in front of their new tent. The tent was donated by the Panguitch Prevention Coalition. The tent shares messages that the team has in common with the coalition on avoiding drugs and alcohol. A big thanks to all who helped obtain the tent and to the supporters of the team and Coalition. —Panguitch Bobcats Track Team
Garkane Achieves Excellence at the Spotlight in Excellence Awards Reception
Courtesy neal Brown
Neal Brown (Left), Alivia Swapp (middle), and Taleana Virostko (right) accept awards on behalf of Garkane Energy at the Spotlight in Excellence awards reception in Houston, Tx. HOUSTON - Garkane Energy Cooperative received recognition in the 2019 Spotlight on Excellence Awards program nationally, sponsored by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Garkane received a Gold award in the Best Total Communication Program category for its yearlong member awareness campaign. A special reception honored the award recipients during the CONNECT ‘19 Conference held in Houston, Texas, on May 7. Winning entries were displayed during the event. “We made a concerted effort in 2018 to educate our consumers of the benefits of being a member of an electric cooperative. While there are many benefits of being a member of Garkane, the most tangible is the low rates Garkane provides. Compared to
other utilities, Garkane’s rates are among the lowest in the state.” Stated Neal Brown, Marketing & Member Service Manager for Garkane. “While it’s nice to be recognized on a national level, I’m more pleased to see the number of consumers who identify as
members increase on a local level. We’ve seen voting numbers in our director elections increase, engagement on Facebook increase, and community engagement increase, Excellence Award Cont'd on page 3
REGIONAL WEATHER FORECAST FOR SOME BUT NOT ALL REGIONS REPRESENTED IN OUR NEWSPAPER COVERAGE AREA
THURS. MAY 16 - WED. MAY 22
Another week of possible storms and slightly lower temperatures. Thursday will be windy, with winds up to 24 mph. Rain chances for Friday are highest at 50%. Highs start off in the 60s, cool down to 50s by Friday; lows in the mid to upper 30s.
ing one of the most successful periods in state history has provided me with the knowledge and experience necessary to sustain our prosperity and take full advantage of important opportunities ahead.” Lt. Gov. Cox was first elected to the Fairview City Council in 2004 and has since served as mayor, county commissioner and state representative prior to being appointed lieutenant governor in 2013. Before becoming lieutenant governor, he worked as Vice President and General Counsel at CentraCom, a telecom-
Boulder Planning Cont'd on page 11
Air Pollution Plagues National Parks WASHINGTON - Air pollution continues to be a major problem for our national parks. according to a new report that says it's getting worse. The National Parks Conservation Association study found that 85% or more of the 417 national park sites it evaluated have air that is unhealthy to breathe at times, with hazy skies that diminish views and air pollution that harms plant and animal life. Stephanie Kodish, the group's Clean Air Program director, said pollution from mining, drilling and burning of fossil fuels can drift hundreds of miles from more densely populated areas, causing serious damage to places set aside to preserve their natural beauty. "These are places that define and unite us as a nation, and they're suffering from air pollution and they're suffering from climate change," she said. "We can turn this around, but we need to be acting together and we need to be acting quickly." The report also found that extreme trends in tem-
Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox Announces Run for Governor
FAIRVIEW - In a video released Tuesday morning, Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox officially announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor of Utah in 2020. “After much prayer and deliberation, Abby and I are excited to announce we are running for governor of the great state of Utah in 2020,” Spencer Cox said. “Serving as lieutenant governor dur-
BOULDER - The May Boulder Town Planning Commission meeting began with a public comment period, followed by a Public Hearing for the Subdivision Ordinance revision. The purpose of the revision is to require that water hookups be in place before a subdivided lot can be sold. One member of the public expressed praise about this revision, however was concerned about the fire hydrant requirement. Many properties have wells and are far from the town water supply. Putting in a hydrant or water tank could be difficult and a major expense. Zoning Administrator Curtis Oberhansly responded that this has been an issue in other towns,
munications business managed by the Cox family since 1919 with operations today in nine Utah counties. In 2016, he and Governor Herbert were re-elected after winning the Republican primary by 44 percent. “We love Utah and serving the people of Utah, but the toxicity of campaigning made this a difficult decision for our family,” said Abby Cox, wife to Spencer. “Too many good people won’t run for office because campaigns Run for Governor Cont'd on page 3
It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop. —Confucius
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Temperatures in national parks are warming at twice the rate of the country as a whole, according to a new report. perature, precipitation and early onset of spring because of climate change are significant concerns in four out of five national parks. Amy Roberts, executive director of the Outdoor Industry Association, said the impact of a warming climate can be seen in receding snowfields
and glaciers, and in wildfires that burn out of control, even in areas such as the Pacific Northwest. "To see that type of wildfire activity in wet climates is really drawing a line under Air Pollution Cont'd on page 3
Op-Ed
Escape Adventures Hut-to-Hut Project too Problematic for Local Businesses and Wildlife by Matt CoChran
BOULDER - As an 11 year resident of Boulder, UT, a Planning Commissioner and a frequent hiker on the Aquarius Plateau I have concerns about issuing Escape Adventures a Categorical Exclusion to create a temporary hut system for their business. Please consider and address the following issues: 1. While tourism can benefit towns like Boulder, giving a non-local company a Categorical Exclusion to use the National Forest in our region for their sole commer-
cial benefit, cuts out any local benefits. 2. As well there is a limit to the amount of tourism a small town and surrounding lands can sustain without losing its rural/frontier character. The National Monument, and Scenic Highway 12 are seeing a massive influx of people over the last years. Now to draw more people into the National Forest is one more influx. A carrying capacity needs to be established or the
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Op-ed
Cont'd on page 12 PRE-SORT STANDARD PAID RICHFIELD, UTAH PERMIT No. 122