News

The Wyoming Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union says that most complaints surrounding state prisons and jails involves improper medical of mental health care.  Much of that has to do with inmates not getting their necessary medication.  

Concerns about possible water shortages have lead the Riverton City Council to adopt a drought plan and implement mild restrictions. Under the plan’s level green, there are no restrictions. The current yellow level asks residents to conserve water voluntarily. Voluntary water conservation measures include fixing leaks and avoiding watering lawns during the hottest parts of the day.

The Bureau of Land Management will auction off wild horses at the Wyoming Honor Farm in Riverton Saturday morning. Wild horses have no natural predators in Wyoming, so the BLM captures the horses and hosts adoptions to control the population and prevent forage scarcity. BLM Wild Horse Specialist Steve Fluer says buyers adopt wild horses for pleasure, novelty, ranch work, and a variety of other reasons. "They’re very agile. They’re very sure footed. They come in a variety of colors. Kinda the mystique to the American public… they’re sort of a legend in the sense. You know, some people just wanna have a wild horse."  Honor Farm inmates have gentled the horses, which means teaching them to be caught, enter a trailer and accept a saddle.

Sublette County is home to two of Wyoming’s major oil and gas fields … and emissions from the energy production have caused smog to form – a type of smog called ozone. Ground-level ozone can cause and exacerbate respiratory problems. It’s also a problem for legal reasons: ozone levels in Sublette County have exceeded federal limits several times in the past few years. Now, the Environmental Protection Agency is stepping in. It’s designating Sublette County a “nonattainment area,” which means Wyoming is obligated to fix the problem. But as Wyoming Public Radio’s Willow Belden reports, there’s no ready solution

The Wyoming Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has studied those who are in jail or in prison in Wyoming for a number of years.  Wyoming is a state that likes to put people behind bars.  The U.S. Justice Department notes that in 2010 Wyoming’s crime rate was 17-percent lower than the national average… but Wyoming’s incarceration rate is only four percent lower.  Meaning that if you commit a crime, you will probably get some time.  Director Linda Burt of Wyoming’s ACLU tells Bob Beck about how those inmates are being treated.

The Cheyenne Regional Medical center and the Wyoming Medical Center in Casper are considering a partnership that they believe may be necessary to remain financially strong in the future.  They are looking at ways to share things from medical providers to joining together to enhance health care across the state.   Wyoming Public Radio’s Bob Beck reports that neither hospital CEO is positive the partnership will work, but they both believe they need to give it a shot in order to remain financially viable.

(Sound of hospital)    

The Wyoming Community Development Authority is encouraging people to buy houses – especially if they’ve never owned a home before. They’re launching a campaign called “Buy Now” – putting up flyers in real estate offices, and offering classes to help first-time buyers navigate the process of purchasing a home. The group’s executive director, David Haney, talks with Willow Belden about the initiative. He says conditions are excellent for buyers at the moment.

Lee Hackleman is a water supply specialist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service. He speaks with Willow Belden about what the warm, dry spring means for Wyoming. He says the snowpack has gotten extremely low, which will make for a tough year.

Casper has begun banning grass clippings and other yard waste from the trash that goes into their landfill. Officials expect it to save the city tens of thousands of dollars, but people who are into living green are pretty excited, too. Wyoming Public Radio’s Rebecca Martinez reports.

(sound of mulch mower cutting grass)

REBECCA MARTINEZ: Hear that? That’s the sound of Casper saving money… Okay, it’s the sound of a mulch mower. Casper parks department employee Ryan Prior is cutting the grass in Mike Sedar Park on a sunny afternoon. The mower looks like a typical ride-on, but it doesn’t have a bag collecting clippings. The mulch mower chops the clippings into tiny particles and deposits them back into the grass, fertilizing the lawn.

(sound of a mulch mower)

This week, the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson Hole is celebrating its 25th anniversary.  It kicks off a number of events that will be part of the celebration.  The museum was a dream that’s come a long ways from its humble beginnings.  Co-founder Bill Kerr tells Bob Beck that the idea was to feature art that may have been overlooked.

During Wyoming Public Radio’s relationship with UW’s Master of Fine Arts program, we have also acquired some people who wanted to learn to be public radio reporters.  Three people have joined us, including this next writer.  Irina Zhorov is an accomplished photographer who wanted to develop her writing skills.  She recently graduated from the M-F-A program.  When Irina came to Wyoming from Philadelphia she had questions about her new state.  Today she tells us about her conclusions in her “Letter to Wyoming.”

The Natural Resources Conservation Service is warning that the warm, dry weather this spring could drive up winter hay prices.

Wyoming’s snowpack is less than 30 percent of average, and Water Supply Specialist Lee Hackleman says farmers who get their water by diverting streams and rivers will be left high and dry.

“There’ll be a lot of people who will probably get their first cutting irrigated but won’t have any water for their second cutting,”
Hackleman said. “So there’s liable to be a hay shortage again this winter.”

Hackleman says people who get their water from reservoirs should be OK, since the reservoirs are still full from last year. But he says everyone else will have much less water than usual to work with.

      The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has denied a Colorado businessman’s application for a re-hearing on his proposal to build a pipeline to transfer water from southwestern Wyoming to Colorado’s Front Range.  It’s the second time Aaron Million’s proposal has been denied.  

It was also opposed by state and local governments in Wyoming and by environmental groups who feared the damage it would do to some endangered species in southwest Wyoming as well as recreation in the area.   Duane Short of the Biodiversity Conservation Alliance hopes this is the last gasp for the project.

     The Environmental Protection Agency will require pollution controls be improved at the Jim Bridger plant near Rock Springs and the Dave Johnson plant near Glenrock, but some don’t think the requirements go far enough.  The changes are part of the E-P-A’s regional haze plan for Wyoming. 

Conservation groups have complained that many of Wyoming’s Coal fire power plants are getting older and that major upgrades are needed to reduce pollution.  Shannon Anderson of the Powder River Basin Resource Council says the state is a leader in coal production, but should not be a leader in coal pollution.

The Buffalo Bill Historic Center in Cody will host a “First Look” at the museum’s reinstallation. The Buffalo Bill Museum recently wrapped up a two-year campaign, during which it raised 2-point-7-5 million dollars to cover renovations and update technology.

Executive Director Bruce Eldredge says the museum will offer updated website components, videos and smart phone apps that share additional information about objects in exhibit.

“This is the way the most museums are moving now, because audiences under the age of 40 or 45 require and expect to learn using that technology," Eldredge said. "Our exhibition that we had before the renovation was done 25 years ago. And it certainly did not meet any of the modern technological needs that our current visitors have.”