6 1 The Lovell Chronicle I January 28, 2010
www. LovellChronicle.com
Local Bighorn Sheep
slated for Seminoes
On Jan. 14, the Wyo-
ming Game & Fish Com-
mission approved a capture
operation to remove up to
12 bighorn sheep from the
Devil's Canyon area east
of Lovell. The sheep will be
used to supplement the De-
cember 2009 release of 20
bighorn sheep from Oregon
into the Seminoe Moun-
tains of Wyoming.
A planned January re-
lease of 40 bighorns from
Utah into the Seminoe
Mountains was cancelled
after Utah biologists docu-
mented significantly few-
er sheep than previously
thought available. With
Utah bighorns no longer
available, the department
began to focus on the Dev-
il's Canyon area.
"We thought and the
WGF Commission agreed
that capturing and moving
up to a dozen bighorns from
the southern end of the
Devil's Canyon area would
accomplish two important
goals: maintaining separa-
tion between wild and do-
mestic sheep in the Devil's
Canyon herd and providing
additional animals to aug-
ment the Seminoe bighorn
herd," said department
bighorn sheep coordinator
Kevin Hurley.
According to Hurley
a small group of bighorn
sheep have established
their home range too near
an area seasonally used as
a livestock driveway for do-
mestic sheep.
"We do not want to risk
potential contact between
domestic and bighorn sheep
because of possible disease
A pair of Big Horn Sheep clambers over the loose
Canyon.
FILE PHOTO
rocks near Big Horn
transmission concerns,"
Hurley said. "The state of
Wyoming's Domestic Sheep/
Bighorn Sheep Interaction
Working Group has worked
hard over the past decade
to maintain separation be-
tween wild and domestic
sheep."
"Devil's Canyon north-
east of Lovell had a popula-
tion between 50-60 bighorn
sheep through the 1990s,"
said Tom Easterly, Game
& Fish wildlife biologist in
Greybull. That small popu-
lation was all that remained
following a 1973 release of
39 bighorns from Whiskey
Mountain near Dubois.
In November of 2004
and January of 2006, 60
bighorn sheep were trans-
planted to the Devil's Can-
yon area to supplement the
herd. Winter 2009-2010
population size is estimat-
ed at 160 bighorns with a
population objective of 200,
Easterly said.
"Each of the adult big-
horn sheep released in 2004
and 2006 were fitted with a
radio tracking device that
allowed biologists to track
movements and collect oth-
er important information,"
Easterly said.
Through monitoring,
Easterly discovered that
three ewes from the Mon-
tana transplant moved ap-
proximately four miles
south to Cottonwood Can-
yon by summer 2006. A
December of 2009 flight
documented at least 11 big-
horns south of Cottonwood
Canyon, within three air-
line miles of Highway 14A,
where two domestic sheep
grazing permittees trail
their stock to and from na-
tional forest grazing allot-
ments.
DEQ: No4in!e. ..-eeded for GreybuIl te;
Landfill boa d vOtes to raise rares slightly
BY BRENDA TENBOER
The South Big Horn
County Landfill is safe for
nOW.
The Wyoming Depart-
ment of Environmental
Quality recently ruled that
a liner with a price tag of
upwards of a million dol-
lars is not needed at the
Greybull landfill.
The DEQ has undertak-
en the task of re-evaluating
all past decisions regard-
ing the need to line future
disposal areas with an en-
gineered containment sys-
tem (liner) with leachate
collection at all operating
municipal solid waste land-
fills in Wyoming, according
to Carl Anderson, Ph.D.,
administrator of the DEQ's
Solid and Hazardous Waste
Division.
The evaluation at the
South Big Horn landfill
was evaluated based on in-
formation gathered from
boring logs and monitor-
ing wells. The facility op-
eration, groundwater data,
local climate data and cam-
puter modeling was also
used to make the determi-
nation, according to Ander-
son.
After careful consider-
ation, the DEQ determined
that the weight of informa-
tion available "does not, at
this time, conclusively sup-
port the need to design and
construct future disposal
areas with an ECS with
leachate collection."
Big Horn County Com-
missioner and regional
landfill planning chairman
Keith Grant said the ruling
is good news for the people
of the county.
"Park County is look-
ing at spending $6 million
on their lined landfills," he
said.
"Here, the south landfill
is on gravelly soil so they
worried about that a little
and in the north the water
isn't near that low, but the
clay soil keeps anything
from leaking," he said.
Grant said in retro-
spect, the whole plan-
ning process as required
by state lawmakers would
have been much easier had
the DEQ analyzed the data
gathered over a one-year
period from the monitoring
wells before ordering talks
of regionalization.
The South Big Horn
County Waste Disposal
District is reimbursed by
the state for 75 percent of
the costs associated with
the monitor wells now re-
quired at all operation-
al landfill sites as well as
closed sites.
The District must cov-
er the engineering fees and
lab costs for 25 percent of
well costs through gate
fees gathered at a rate of
3.5 cents per pound of gar-
bage.
GATE FEE INCREASE
At its regular meeting
last Tuesday, the board
voted to increase the gate
fee by an additional half
of a cent beginning July 1,
taking the fee to an even 4
cents per pound.
Board member Jim
Morris of Basin said let-
ters go out this week to all
business account custom-
ers and municipalities for
budgeting purposes.
The increase will apply
to both the Greybull and
Lovell landfills.
The DEQ ruled last
year that the Lovell site
does not need a liner.
The last increase was
made two years ago from 3
cents to 3.5 cents per pound,
according to Morris.
Grant said that recy-
cling efforts within the
county need to continue to
move forward, because ul-
timately that is what will
preserve the lives of the
landfills.
"Recycling is the right
thing to do," Grant said.
Morris said the solid
waste district board contin-
ues to discuss the purchase
of a baler for use at one of
the facilities.
"We could haul the gar-
bage to one end of the coun-
ty to be baled," Morris said.
"It's worth it, it saves that
much."
Have a news tip?
Call or email the Loveil Chronicle
548-2217 or Icnews@tctwest.net
Februaw 6 & 7
BHC4-H Steer tagging Feb. 6, Burlington and Cowley, Feb.
7, Basin. For more information call 765-2868.
BHC School District No. 1 Board, 2nd Thursday."
BHC School District No. 2 Board (Lovell), 2nd Monday, board morn,
7p.m.
BHC Treasurer at County Annex, 1st and 3rd Thursday each month,
9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Big Hem Basin chapter of Gold Prospectors Association of Amedca,
Skyline Cafe in Powell, 2nd Tuesday, 7 p.m., 754-5921.
Big Hem County 4-H Leader's Council, 1st Monday, Extension Office
on Hwy 310, 7 p.m.
Big Hem County Weed and Pest monthly board meeting, 2nd Tuesday,
1 p.m., W&P office at 4782 Hwy. 310, Greybull.
Byron Lions Club, 1st and 3rd Tuesday, Byron Town Hall, 7 p.m.
Cancer Support Group, 3rd Thursday, 7 p.m., NHCC multi-purpose
room.
Compassionate Friends Support Group, last Wednesday, Long Term
Care Center Conference Room, Wast Park Hospital, 7 p.m. Contact
Melodye Trusty, 578-2418.
Cowley Riding Club, 3rdMonday, 7 p.m.
Lovell Area Chamber of Commerce general membership meeting, 3rd
Monday, noon, Lange's Kitchen
Lovell Bulldog Booster Club, 3rd Wednesday, Big Horn Federal Hos-
pitality Room, 7 pm.
Lovell Guitar Club, Thursday, 8 pm. Call Steve, 548-7227.
Lovell Library Story Time, every Tuesday, 10:30 a.m
Lovell Lions Club, 2ndFriday, noon; 4th Wednesday, 8:30 p.m., 548-
2431.
Lovell Riders, Inc. meeting, 2nd Thursday, Fire Hall, 7 p.m.
Lovell Town Council, 2nd Tuesday, Town Hall, 7 p.m.
Lovell Woman's Club, 2nd Wednesday, Big Hem Federal Hospitality
Room, 1 p.m. Contact Deanna Wagner, 548-7793.
NAMI Big Hem County, 1st Thursday, 548-2431, 548-6865.
North Big Hem County Health Coalition, 3rd Tuesday, noon, rotating
locations, 548-6410.
Ostomy Support Group meeting, 2nd Tuesday, 7 p.m., North Fork
room, West Park Hospital in Cody.
Plndroppers Quilt Club, 4th Thursday, 7 p.m., Big Hem Federal hos-
pitality room.
Spokas-n-Folks, call 548-2431 548-2883.
TOPS @ WY189, every Thursday, St. John's Episcopal Church base-
ment in Powell, 6 p.m. 754-2682, 664-2394
Tri-Mountain View Masonic Lodge, 2nd Thursday, dinner 8:30 p.m.,
lodge meeting 7:30 p.m.
VFW Meeting, 4th Thursday, 7 p.m., Big Horn County Annex bldg,
Lovell.
Veterans Representative, 1st Wednesday, Powell Warkforce Center,
9 am - noon; 2nd Thursday Frannie Town Hall, 9 am - noon & Lovell
Police Dept. 1 -4 pm; 3rdFriday, Greybull Town Hall, 9:30 - 1:30 am
& Wodand Woddorce Center 12:30 - 2:30 pm.
WyDOT Driver Licensing Facility open in Lovell every Tuesday, 9:30
a.m. to 4 p.m.
Call the Lovell Chronicle at 548-2217 to list your club here.
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