by Gena Akers
Drilling Lawsuit
Moves Forward
Individual declarations have been submitted to the U.S. District Court and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to contest the authorized exploratory oil/gas drilling in San Francisco Creek, an area south of Del Norte. The complainants assert that the BLM violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to take a “hard look” at the impacts of the proposed drilling. The complainants particularly pointed to the Rio Grande County-commissioned hydrogeologic study and alleged the BLM decision did not fully consider or adopt the recommendations from the study.
Wolf Creek Owner Punished
Randall D. Pitcher, 52, of Pagosa Springs, owner and operator of Wolf Creek Ski Area, was sentenced in Durango to serve five years on supervised probation, including 500 hours of community service. He was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine.
Pitcher pleaded guilty to a single charge of conducting search-and-rescue training on public land without a permit. Pitcher pleaded not guilty to five additional charges, three related to unauthorized work on public land and two addressing unauthorized use of explosives. The Forest Service filed misdemeanor charges against Pitcher after the March 4 death of Wolf Creek ski patroller Colin Sutton. Sutton died in an avalanche while conducting snow-safety research 16 miles southeast of the ski area.
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Water Tensions High
The Rio Grande Roundtable has tabled a $30,314 request from the San Luis Valley Council of Governments for an 18-month economic impact analysis of decreased crop production due to reduced groundwater irrigation. The total project cost is $80,300. Some roundtable members questioned the timing of the proposal and whether it fit with the roundtable’s mission.
Unmanned Area Systems Come to Valley
Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) may soon be seen flying in the San Luis Valley. Alamosa County has submitted its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Certificate of Authorization application. Five of the Valley’s six counties have pledged their support for the application.
If the FAA approves the application, the county will begin talks with UAS companies interested in operations in the Valley. UAS testing could include public safety, search and rescue, precision agriculture, and pipeline and power line inspection services, as well as provide situational awareness during fires, floods and other natural disaster activities.
The long-term plan is to develop UAS industry expertise in the Valley through higher education- supported curriculums at Trinidad State Junior College and Adams State University, and then turn the endeavor over to Alamosa County and its partners to solely manage. According to UAS Colorado, the Valley is an ideal location for UAS development because it offers nearly all of the components – 27 out of 28 – desired for testing, including agricultural and mountainous terrain with minimal existing air traffic and no conflicts with military training.
Mayor Publishes Book
Aaron Abeyta, Adams State University professor of English, writer and Mayor of Antonito, published Letters From the Headwaters with Western Press Books this past fall. The book contains a collection of letters Abeyta wrote to friends and relatives, and elegies to his hometown for Western State University’s annual Headwaters Conference.
Shorts
• Deputy Secretary of State Suzanne Staiert ruled that according to state statute, Bonanza, an old mining town in Saguache County, is, in fact, still a town.
• In December, the Alamosa Friends of the Library released their sixth “Messages from the Hidden Lake,” an annual literary publication featuring regional writers.
• The Center School Board of Education is considering a recall election for members in the new year.
• The Rio Grande Basin is sitting at the bottom of the state, with a snowpack of 57 percent of normal.
• Monte Vista Middle School sixth-grader Brie Valdez is the first Valley conservation poster contest contestant to go all the way to the National Association of Conservation Districts competition in nine years.
