No Nuke Waste in Skull Valley
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www.tooeletranscript.com TUESDAY Enjoy snapshots of 2006 See B1 TOOELETRANSCRIPT BULLETIN January 2, 2007 SERVING TOOELE COUNTY SINCE 1894 VOL. 113 NO. 64 50¢ 2006 Top 10 Stories No nuke waste in Skull Valley A national lowed by government deci- uproar cre- sions, Tooele County’s image 1 ated by Utah as a hazardous waste dumping Top 10 leadersTop 10 and ground would have skyrock- stories of e nstories v i r o n of m e n - eted — something that state 2006 talists200 spelled6 and county leaders are trying the demise to avoid in their effort to lure of a plan to clean, environmentally-friend- store nuclear waste in Skull ly industry to Tooele County. Valley. The 12-year plan Environmentalists were for a massive facility to be concerned about the safety built on the Goshute Indian of storing highly radioactive Reservation in Skull Valley material in the state. was battered by decisions It was a perplexing situation from federal agencies during for county leaders because 2006. The plan now appears the project, which had been dead. The most devastating approved by the Nuclear damage came in September Regulatory Commission, when the Department of the would have pumped money Interior denied Private Fuel into county coffers from miti- Storage Inc.’s lease with the gation fees. These fees from Goshutes. companies in the west desert Without all the clamor are a major source of revenue against the nuclear site fol- for the county. Also, additional jobs would have been added. Commissioner Dennis Rockwell said that during the early years of the proposal, commissioners made sure the county would be compensat- ed well financially if the plan Photography / Troy Boman was to be “shoved down our Miller Motorsports Park opened in grand style in June with professional motorcyle racing. The action continued throughout the year with some throats.” After several years of of America’s top racing associations holding events at the new park. answering questions from reg- ulatory agencies about its pro- posed operation, Private Fuel Storage was issued a license Deseret Peak area set to boom from the NRC in February. The open- from all over the world to rezoned from agriculture/resi- ed the area quickly became The company’s plan was to ing of the $90 Tooele Valley. County leaders, dential to commercial, indus- a hot target for developers transport nuclear waste from 2 million world- realizing the potential of the trial and tourism zones. One — several wanted to develop power plants throughout the Top 10 classTo p 10Miller surrounding area, created a reason for the rezoning was residential areas around the photography / Troy Boman nation to a facility on the res- stories of Motorsportsstories of buffer zone around the track to provide a barrier between park. Commissioners initially Goshute Skull Valley Tribal Band ervation in Skull Valley. Waste 2006 2006 Park near and complex to allow for an the track and residential areas placed a six-month morato- Chairman Leon Bear worked with would be stored there until a Deseret Peak expected commercial and to squelch noise, but the long- rium on development in the Private Fuel Storage Inc. to build a permanent disposal site could temporary high-level nuclear waste Complex in 2006 was big industrial boom in the area. term land-use implications area while they planned for storage facility on Goshute land in news, and throughout the Six square miles surround- were even more significant. Skull Valley. SEE WASTE ON A9 year the races drew people ing MMP and the complex were County leaders report- SEE MILLER ON A9 Tooele School District fastest growing in Utah Housing The Utah Johnsen attributed the mode since 2002 to address the To keep pace with the rapid who have moved or otherwise State Office growth to the trend of rapid problem of finding space for growth, the district needs to fill left the profession. prices of Education residential growth in Tooele the glut of students. The dis- 20 new teaching positions each Ground will be broken 3 recently ranked County over the past seven trict has built a junior high and year. In 2006 the district filled on the Stansbury Park High Top 10 Top 10 stories of Tooelestories County of years. elementary school, and remod- 90 teaching positions — new School in March, but it will 2006 School200 District6 According to Johnsen, the eled several other schools dur- positions and replacements skyrocket the fastest grow- district has been in building ing this time period. for retirees and other teachers SEE GROWING ON A3 With skyrock- ing school dis- eting residen- trict in the state. With the open- tial growth also ing of new schools, remodeling 4 came skyrocket- of existing schools and a des- Top 10 ing homeTop 10 prices perate need for teachers, rapid stories of stories of 2006 in Tooele2006 Valley growth in the district was one in 2006. The of the biggest stories of 2006. trend fattened The district’s growth rate for county coffers with tax reve- 2006 was 6.1 percent, almost nues and pleased existing hom- double the statewide average eowners, but it also left many of 3.2 and well ahead of the lower-income residents worried next fastest growing districts about being able to find afford- in Rich and Washington coun- able housing. ties at 4.8 percent. The average price for a sin- In 2006, the district grew gle-family home jumped from by 714 students for a total of $140,065 in 2005 to $171,342 11,793. And Tooele County through October, an increase of School District Superintendent 22 percent, according to data Mike Johnsen projects at least from the Wasatch Front Multiple 635 students will join the dis- Listing Service. This represents trict in 2007. Although the dis- the biggest single-year increase trict is rapidly growing, it is far in the past three years. Over behind the two largest districts that time period, average home in the state: Jordan with 77,396 prices have gone up by 39 per- students and Granite with cent. Despite rising prices, sales 69,048 students. volume for single-family homes The recent growth in Tooele was particularly hot through the County represents only a slight first three quarters of the year. cooling off from the 6.8 percent From January to September, 990 rate recorded in 2005, when homes sold, and that doesn’t the district was also the fastest photography / Troy Boman growing in the state. A teacher stands ready to help kids and parents during the first day of school at Harris Elementary in Tooele. SEE HOME ON A3 WEATHER OPEN FORUM A4 HOMETOWN B1 INSIDE Mostly cloudy Wednesday and OBITUARIES A6 CLASSIFIEDS B2 Thursday with a high of 41. Chance Lady Buffs break losing streak of rain and snow on Thursday. THE BULLETIN BOARD A7 TV LISTINGS B3 See A10 Complete Forecast: A2 SPORTS A10 CROSSWORD B7 A2 TOOELE TRANSCRIPT-BULLETIN TUESDAY January 2, 2007 Utah & The West Valley Weather Forecast Local Weather Snowmobilers return to N. Idaho forests where last caribou roam by James Hagengruber “We’re hoping we’re on the Conservationists are willing to alpine caribou habitat in central with us,” he said. “They just stood mend,” Porter said Dec. 9. In the work with snowmobilers to find a British Columbia. The animals were there.” Wed 42/34 THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW 1/3 NORDMAN, Idaho (AP) — The forest behind his shop, the snow solution, Sprengel said, but there’s common on all five blocks of land, Many snowmobile enthusiasts, Mostly cloudy. High 42F. Winds S whine of snowmobile engines again was already knee-deep. “The winter little room for compromise in the except the single tract where snow- including Spokane resident John at 5 to 10 mph. echoes through the national forest season is critical. If we only had Selkirks, the last mountain range in mobiling was allowed. There, the Bymers, believe the lawsuit to ban here. summer, it’d be really tough.” the contiguous United States with radio-collared animals showed up snowmobiling in caribou country The sound infuriates those seek- Snowmobilers appear to have the same mix of wildlife and fish during only one of the four winters was simply a smoke screen for what won the latest round in the high- species as when Lewis and Clark of the study period and at far fewer Thu ing to protect the Lower 48 states’ they say is a crusade by environ- 44/26 stakes legal pingpong match with explored the West. numbers than the habitat would 1/4 last herd of caribou but thrills local mentalists to push motorized sports business owners and riders from caribou advocates, but the issue “Even Glacier or Yellowstone have been expected to support, Few showers. Highs in the mid 40s is far from settled. This month, (national parks) can’t make that according to Seip’s research, which off public lands. The caribou law- and lows in the mid 20s. across the region who claim their Whaley will consider a request by claim,” he said. was shared this month in Spokane suit angered Bymers enough to join sport has little to do with the plight conservation groups to re-evaluate In Sprengel’s view, protecting at the semiannual meeting of the a snowmobile advocacy group that of the endangered animal. his decision to lift the snowmobil- caribou would also help save the International Mountain Caribou fights the creation of wilderness The forests on the west side of Fri 29/17 ing ban. few remaining wolverines, lynx, Technical Committee. areas. Priest Lake were largely silent last 1/5 Mark Sprengel, director of the fisher and grizzly bears that live in The research suggests that “We need to get involved and season after U.S.