My Page: Amy Seigel
Not At Liberty to Smoke in Liberty Park?
No More Puffin’ in Salt Lake ParksOnce allowed everywhere—even in airplane lavatories—smoking in public is quickly becoming an endangered habit; smokers can no longer enjoy their cigarettes in the warmth of the club, the airport concourse, the office lounge. But until now, in Salt Lake City at least, outdoor venues have not been targeted by the anti-smoking movement in any organized way. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, this may be about to change. On Thursday, city council discussed a proposal by Mayor Rocky Anderson’s office that would ban smoking in all of Salt Lake’s 75 parks, as well as within 50 feet of gatherings of at least 500 people, such as the summertime jazz and arts festivals. [more]
News Flash: Utah Needs More Water!
Why Conserve When You Can Dam?Apparently, the Wasatch Front just needs more water. In Washington last Wednesday the House passed a bill that would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to study the environmental effects and financial costs of raising the Arthur V. Watkins Dam. The Watkins Dam encloses Willard Bay in Weber County, a reservoir of 215,000 acre-feet, with a surface area of more than 9,900 acres. The proposed expansion—raising the dam a mere 1-2 feet—could potentially increase the storage capacity of Willard Bay by as much as 50,000 or 70,000 acre-feet. [more]
There's Oil in Them Thar Sands
Utah’s Oil Sands: Riches or Ruin?So often in the West we are asked to make a choice between preserving natural resources and enabling economic growth. Utah’s fragile desert landscapes are unique, not only in their natural beauty, but also because of the wealth, in the form of buried hydrocarbons, they contain. Last week’s article about the 10th anniversary of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument detailed the controversy surrounding the proposed Andalex coal mine on the Kaiparowits Plateau, and the debate between local economy and the environment. Last Thursday, at the Western Oil Sands Conference at the University of Utah, this very same debate was played out on a large scale—only this time the resource was not coal, but some unsung substances known as “tar sands” or “oil sands.” [more]
A Very Happy Anniversary?
Ten Years Later: Grand Staircase-Escalante Still Elicits Both Cheers and Jeers from UtahnsThis past Monday marked the 10th anniversary of the creation of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah. The 1.9 million-acre wilderness was signed over to the protective custody of the federal Bureau of Land Management by President Clinton on Sept. 18, 1996. Since that date, the monument has been a major point of contention between environmentalists and local activists concerned with the potentially negative impact of the monument on the regional economies of Garfield and Kane counties. Although a lot has changed in ten years, there is still plenty of emotion on both sides of this debate. [more]
Guns 'N Grads
Utah Supreme Court Just Says “No” to the U of U’s Gun BanNothing says “back to school” quite like granting coeds the right to bear arms on campus. Last week, the Utah Supreme Court ruled 4-1 against the University of Utah’s nearly three-decade-old policy banning guns on campus saying that the ban goes against state law. However, the university is not backing down. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the University president Michael Young is standing by its policy and refusing to lift the ban on weapons until he hears from the U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City where the case is now headed for litigation of federal constitutional issues. “Universities across the country uniformly prohibit guns on campus,” said Young. “We hope that, following a review of this case in federal court, the issue will be resolved to uphold our long-standing policy of keeping firearms off campus.” [more]
Blowin' in the Wind
Salt Lake County’s Push for Green Energy Brings Bluer Skies to UtahUtah’s blue skies just keep getting bluer, thanks in large part to Salt Lake County mayor Peter Corroon. Corroon, whose continued environmental advocacy has brought the county everything from smart watering practices and xeriscaping to hybrid cars and energy-efficient light bulbs, is using his political clout to urge Utahans to make the switch to wind power. [more]
Swiss Tacos, Furry Herders and Leiderhosen
Bush Visit Blues? Head for the High Country for Labor Day Fun.If a week of protesting President Bush’s visit, or protesting the protestors of President Bush’s visit, has you yearning for a little R&R, take a look at these Labor Day weekend festivities guaranteed to cure you of those Rocky Anderson-Cindy Sheehan-President Bush Blues. [more]
I SHOT THE MASTIFF
Dog Ordinances, While Arbitrary, Are the Law
It’s no secret that urban living takes some compromises. And most of the time we all agree to do the little things that help make our cities livable for all kinds of people—we keep our trash in bins that we put out once a week for collection, refrain from parking dilapidated cars on our front lawns, and so on. For the most part, city ordinances are things we never even think about, rules of conduct that are so commonsensical for most city dwellers that we barely give them a second thought. However, when those rules concern our pets—the creatures we often love and cherish nearly as much as children, and sometimes in place of children—we might want to pay a little more attention. [more]
Surprise, Surprise...
Utah Schools Slash Teacher BenefitsTell me again why we can’t recruit or keep qualified teachers in our public school? Oh yes, now I remember. It has something to do with low salaries, the rigorous demands of No Child Left Behind, and things like this. [more]
MAKING TRAX
TRAX HappyWe’re terribly lucky here in Salt Lake. Not only do we have a beautiful city surrounded by tall mountains and, indisputably, the greatest snow on earth, but we also have a mass transit system that, for the most part, really seems to work. I am not aware of any other Western city of comparable size that even comes close to providing its citizens with the same kind of service I’ve come to expect from UTA. Sure, hosting the Olympics does amazing things for a city’s infrastructure—we’re very lucky to have light rail system that spans so much of the city. And sure, not nearly enough people take advantage of the excellent bus and light rail service. All in all, however, Salt Lake is a pretty friendly place for those who need (or choose) to use public transportation. [more]
