A couple from Durango, CO will face trial in 2018 for charges related to livestock endangerment.
Rose Chilcoat and her husband, Mark Kevin Franklin, were bound over for trial at a preliminary hearing on November 2 in the Seventh District Court.
Chilcoat has a January 31, 2018 jury trial date, while Franklin will face charges before a jury on February 1.

San Juan County may be getting a Presidential visit in coming weeks. President Donald Trump plans to visit the state in early December, most likely to announce reductions in the boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument.
On October 27, Utah Senator Orrin Hatch said President Trump had approved a significant reduction in Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante national monuments.

An enormous increase in entrance fees is proposed for several of the most popular National Parks, including Canyonlands in San Juan County.
The National Park Service is considering a proposal that would increase the entrance fee from $25 to $70 per car from May through September. The proposed fee increase is for 17 parks, including four parks in Utah: Canyonlands, Arches, Bryce Canyon and Zions.

The convictions of San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman and Monticello resident Monte Wells were upheld in an October 23 ruling by the U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. The two men were convicted for their role in the May, 2014 protest in Recapture Canyon.

A lawsuit against Energy Fuels, which operates the White Mesa uranium mill south of Blanding, has been dismissed by a federal judge.
U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups dismissed the case, ruling that previously reported radon emissions from one of the mill’s tailings cells did not violate environmental regulations.

Road closures and road openings have moved front and center in San Juan County, with three separate incidents gaining the attention of area residents.
In the past week, several small roads were “obliterated” on land managed by the U.S. Forest Service within the current boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument.

The White Mesa Mill, which is the only federally licensed uranium-processing mill in the United States, held an open house in the past week.
It is one of a few times since the facility opened in 1980 that tours were available of the multi-million dollar mill, disposal cells, and tailings ponds.
Approximately 140 people participated in the event, which included elected officials, media, industry officials, and local residents.

Despite a wave of leaks and guesses, and allegations and denials, the U.S. government has not announced the next step in the Bears Ears National Monument.
While Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has recommended that Bears Ears National Monument be decreased in size, no maps have been released as of the press deadline on September 19.

by Bill Boyle
The Latigo Wind Farm, located just north of Monticello city limits, continues to be a source of controversy among some in San Juan County.
Two years ago, construction crews were working day and night to install the wind farm, a 60 MW project just north of Monticello.

TIED TO THE POSTby Tonya Stiles
Do you ever wonder if Facebook is making you hate people?

The federal government will decrease the size of Bears Ears National Monument, but the details are still unknown.
On August 24, U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke sent a draft report to President Donald Trump which includes Zinke’s findings and recommendations on national monuments.
The boundaries of Bears Ears, a 1.35 million acre monument created in December, 2016 by President Barack Obama, are slated to be “right-sized.”

TAKE IT OR LEAVE ITby Jim Stiles
Back in 2008, the day after Obama’s landslide election, Moab progressive/ environmentalist Dave Erley sent out a mass celebratory email. In part he wrote:
“The progressive, green, candidates won all three contested County Council seats and the progressives now have a clear majority on the Council.

Current and forecasted weather conditions coupled with extremely dry conditions and heavy loading of vegetation throughout San Juan County have created hazardous fire conditions.
As a result, on June 29, all State, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and National Park Service lands and all unincorporated private lands in the following areas are under fire restrictions:

Volunteers, archaeologists, family members, and the State of Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) came together this past spring for a remarkable restoration project of the Shumway Cabin in Recapture Wash.
Over the past few months, the early 1900s historic cabin was stabilized in hopes that it will be around for another 100 years for the enjoyment of visitors and descendants of its original inhabitants.

The US Secretary of the Interior is recommending that the boundaries of the Bears Ears National Monument be cut back.
Secretary Ryan Zinke made his recommendation after a 45-day review that was ordered by President Donald Trump. Details have not yet been ironed out, but the Secretary’s statement suggested that the 1.35 million acre national monument could be cut dramatically.