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Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>You Still Here? Saturday, October 28, 2023 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

You Still Here? Saturday, October 28, 2023

 Remember, it is never necessary to look for traffic before opening your car doors...

Heinz mark

Mark Heinz

Around Wyoming

Lake Powell, a key reservoir on the Colorado River, is shrinking toward "dead pool," which means water won't flow downriver anymore — and that could in turn pinch Wyoming’s municipal and industrial water supplies with more demand from Flaming Gorge Reservoir.

Lake Powell, on the Utah-Arizona state line, is in dire condition, 

By next spring, it’s expected to fall into “minimum power pool,” meaning having barely just enough water to generate hydroelectric power at Glen Canyon Dam.

If it falls even farther, that could put the reservoir at “dead pool,” or unable to generate hydroelectric power, according to reports.

That's despite roughly 1 million acre-feet expected to be 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘Paper Water Rights’"}]

Dead pool is considered only a worst-case scenario among water managers.

But if it happens, it could lead to some stark choices, said Wyoming state Sen. Larry Hicks, who served on the Legislature’s Select Water Committee.

In such a scenario, “power generation is subservient” to irrigation water rights, he told Cowboy State Daily.

“Power Generation is important, but it’s not as important as maintaining peoples’ livelihood,” Hicks said. 

The looming dilemmas over Colorado River water rest in the fact that water management is rooted in “paper water rights,” he said.

Many of those are tied to the 1922 Colorado River Compact, which includes seven states, Mexico and numerous Native American Tribes.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Just Not Enough Water"}]

In Wyoming, many farmers’ and ranchers’ water rights predate the 1922 Compact, going as far back as the 1880s.

That means if spats break out over Compact water rights as the river’s supply dwindles, farms and ranches along the Green and Little Snake rivers would be largely unaffected, Hicks said.

The Compact designates roughly 15 million acre-feet per year, supposedly evenly split at 7.5 million acre-feet between the Upper Basin and Lower Basin.

The Upper Basin states are Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico. Arizona, Nevada and California comprise the Lower Basin.

River flows in recent years have been as low as about 10 million acre-feet, Hicks said.

If the Lower Basin states made an emergency “call on the river” for more access to the Upper Basin allocation, Wyoming’s farmers and ranchers wouldn't catch the brunt of it, he said.

“The Trona industry and big municipalities in Wyoming” would be most at risk of losing vital water, he said.

For instance, even though Cheyenne isn’t physically connected to the Colorado River system, it still depends upon of it because of water-exchange agreements on the North Platte River.

“Arizona is the state that’s most likely to litigate and say, ‘We’re entitled to this water; you need to send it to us’,” Hicks said.

The growing crisis on the Colorado River “is a concern for Cheyenne and our board of public utility,” Mayor Patrick Collins told Cowboy State Daily.

The city gets about “two-thirds of our water” from sources tied to the Colorado River water contract exchange agreements, he said.

Cheyenne has been preparing for potential water shortages, Collins said.

“If they make a call on the river, it’s going to take a while to take effect,” he said, adding that Cheyenne has a roughly four-year backup storage supply.

Cheyenne has been frugal with its water, typically using about half of its full allocation, Collins added.

Despite growth, the city is using about the same amount of water it was 10 years ago, he said.

In the long term, Cheyenne also hopes to break away from Colorado River dependency.

“We have good leads on replacement water from other areas,” he said, without going into detail.

“There is an irrigation district that we’ve been working with, and some industrial users on the Platte River,” Collins said.

Rock Springs mayor Max Mickelson said the city has some water rights dating to 1871, and is therefore immune to any effects tied to the 1922 Colorado River Compact.

“Our system has never overdrawn its allocation the way the Lower Basin has. The current diversion data our Joint Powers Water Board presented to council shows zero deficit under today's conditions. 11,011 acre-feet of annual demand against roughly 2,413 acre-feet available on average, showing no shortfall in any month,” he stated in an email to Cowboy State Daily.

“That's not luck. That's a century of municipal water management that lived within its means. While states downstream built entire metro economies on water that was never really there in average years.” 

The local economy has felt the effects of increasing pressure on Flaming Gorge from the Lower Basin, Mickelson said. The city doesn’t draw from it directly, but is tied to the recreation economy.

“Our recreation, fishing, and marinas economies will all take a hit,” he said. "Our exposure so far has been to the regional environment and economy, not to the water coming out of our faucets.” 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘It’s A Concern’"}]

If Lake Powell hits dead pool, that would be a concern for Rock Springs, Mickelson said, noting the federal response to the crisis at Lake Powell is to pull from Flaming Gorge.  

“The Bureau of Reclamation's own modeling, presented to council this May, shows a projected shortfall of 2.0 to 2.3 million acre-feet by March 2027,” Mickelson wrote.

“So, yes, it's a concern, but it is fundamentally about fairness. The Flaming Gorge Reservoir is filled by our river and is treated as insurance for a 1922 compact built on flow numbers that were too generous from the start. We watch Powell's elevation because every foot drop is another argument for draining more from our basin,” he said.

Rock Springs, and Wyoming in general, has been proactive, passing voluntary conservation legislation while keeping underlying water rights protected, Mickelson said.

The Upper Basin should continue in that vein, he added.

“Wyoming has a seat at the table and needs to demand a storage agreement that lets Upper Basin states bank conserved water. We need an explicit federally acknowledged agreement that Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado hold unused apportionment under the original compact. We did not overbuild its claim,” Mickelson wrote.  

Lake Powell Weather Channel 3 7 1 26

<title>Lake Powell Water Critically Low; Wyoming Expects More Demand On Flaming Gorge | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Already at critically low levels, Lake Powell is close to being "dead pool," which means water won't flow downriver anymore. That has Wyoming cities and industries worried that will mean more demand for water from Flaming Gorge Reservoir.

Lake Powell Water Critically Low; Wyoming Expects More Demand On Flaming Gorge

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's business and tourism reporter, Renée Jean

Renée Jean

Wyoming Life

“Ambitious” might be the only word big enough to describe Wyoming’s birthday party for America’s 250th. 

Instead of a single day of fireworks and fanfare, the Cowboy State is building monuments, commissioning new music, and mapping out trail rides that will outlast the holiday itself. 

This year’s Fourth of July is less one-off party and more permanent invitation to explore the Cowboy State’s place in the American story, from one corner of Wyoming to the next. 

From Buffalo to Newcastle, Cody, Dubois, Evanston, Jackson, Gillette, Casper, Cheyenne and more, communities are finding wildly different ways to extend that invitation and have fun doing so.

Runners will wolf down hot dogs on every lap of a 1.776K in Buffalo, for example, while in Cody people can raise a beer stein to toast America with an America 250 Pale Ale. In Newcastle, crowds will gather at the Weston County Courthouse steps to hear President Teddy Roosevelt’s 1903 speech brought to life again. 

In Cheyenne, concertgoers will hear a symphony orchestra piece written just for Wyoming by Hollywood composer Jeff Lippencott, timed to a fireworks display over the Capitol’s golden dome. 

Just down the street, four bronze panels have just been installed to tell the state’s history for at least the next millennium. 

Two C-130 jets from the Wyoming Air National Guard’s 153rd Airlift Wing will take to the skies Saturday morning, each going in a different direction. They’ll pass over 16 communities at roughly 1,000 feet and 200 knots for a Fourth of July salute before reconvening in the middle and roaring back into Cheyenne at 1 p.m. for a Capitol flyover. 

In Dubois, the usual tank parade that draws thousands to this tiny mountain town is on, but it will be preceded Friday with some live vehicle demolitions and firepower demonstrations at the National Museum of Military Vehicles — a noisy day any true tank fan should adore. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"We’re All Americans"}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Not all of the plans are noisy. "}]

New Mexico transplant Khristin Kaske has come up with her own idea for Cheyenne’s celebration.

She’s repurposed an old archway once used for her wedding into a red, white and blue selfie station for America’s 250th and put the word out: “Hey, ya’ll come!”

“I love to craft, so the decorating corner is just fun,” she told Cowboy State Daily. 

The idea started in November with a fall setup followed by Thanksgiving and Christmas. Kaske enjoyed it so much, she took herself to Hobby Lobby for its big after-Christmas sale and stocked up on decorations for every season.

“Their Christmas is all different colors,” she said. “So I could get stuff for any upcoming holiday.”

She also watches for cool stuff from thrift stores and yard sales, as well as cruising craft-store aisles for clearance items. 

So far she’s done Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day and now, America’s 250th. Next up will be a selfie booth for Cheyenne Frontier Days.

Kaske isn’t home much in the daytime, but she knows the selfie booth is popular. 

“I see lots of footprints out there,” she said. “And when I’m home, I do see people coming over and taking pictures.”

She’s put up a shepherd’s hook with doggy bags so people can bring pets — and so far, her visitors have all been considerate guests, cleaning up after their pets and helping to take care of this free resource. 

That warms her heart, especially for the Fourth, because this is a time when she feels, no matter how crazy, we need to remember that we’re all Americans first, second, and last.

“We still have a lot to be thankful for in this country,” she said. “Doing things just like this, for example. Being able to have the freedom to put up decorations and expressions. I think it’s important to hang onto the reality that we still have a lot of freedoms.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Echoes In Bronze"}]

A similar sentiment has inspired Wyoming’s latest bronze installation, which will be the 99th in Cheyenne’s Capitol Avenue Bronze series.

Four new bronze panels will be placed on the corner of Capitol and 22nd Street, each telling a different chapter of Wyoming’s place in America’s 250 years, according to Cheyenne and Laramie County America 250 Chairman Nathaniel Trelease. 

“The challenge was that Wyoming didn’t exist in 1776,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “So what we decided to do was take America’s founding principles and reflect how they echo in Wyoming history.”

That’s where the installation’s name, "Echoes: Wyoming at America 250", comes from. 

The first panel depicts Wyoming as it was at America’s birth, 250 years ago, with all manner of wildlife hiding in a forest scene. A moose turns its head toward a wolf, which appears to be eating something, while deer scamper and play in a dreamy, far-distant background. There are beavers and birds and more — but it will take considerable time and study to find them all. 

Another panel traces Native American trade routes and the great overland trails that funneled settlers west through Wyoming. A third focuses on the state’s economic development. Mines are started and railroad tracks laid, even as explorers such as Lewis and Clark came to map out the newly added western territories. 

The fourth panel highlights Wyoming’s trailblazing role in women’s suffrage and early civil rights as the first state in the union to allow women to vote. 

In it, Judge Esther Hobart Morris hands a flag with 44 stars to Wyoming Gov. Francis E. Warren, while in the center, Wyoming’s soon-to-be first female Wyoming governor Nellie Tayloe Ross watches women ascend steps to cast their votes. Louisa Swain, the first woman to vote in Wyoming, is depicted casting her ballot, along with a handful of other women lining up right behind her. 

Ross, Warren and Swain are all among bronze statues in the Capitol Avenue Bronze project, Trelease said. And that’s part of what the bronze panels aim to accomplish — tying together the many disparate pieces of Wyoming history scattered along the avenue for one coherent story of how Wyoming has come to matter so much to a country that began its life long before the territory was a state. 

It’s a story that, unlike fireworks and parades, won’t fade with the sunset. It will last at a thousand years or more, Trelease said. 

“This is leaving a visual footprint of where we were in 2026 for the Jubilees that will come in 50 years, 100 years, 150 years,” Trelease said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"250 Years In 76 Objects"}]

While the bronzes will give visitors a history they can see and touch, American Heritage Center’s Paul Flesher is working on a version that people can hold in their hands.

The book, tentatively titled, “Wyoming’s History in 76 Object”, will use photographs of carefully chosen artifacts to tell the state’s history. Some of the artifacts are small. A coal mine whistle, for example, and a battered cowboy hat.

Others are large. Historic landmarks such as Devils Tower, for example, or the National Center for Atmospheric Research’s old Yellowstone supercomputer. 

“We’ll talk about buffalo and horses and cattle and sheep,” Flesher said. “And we’ll hit the railroad, the transcontinental railroad, and we’ll talk about the oldest buildings in the state.”

Each object chosen for the book comes with a 400-word essay, giving just a thumbnail sketch of its history.

“We couldn’t possibly include everything,” Flesher said. “So the question became, what objects best capture the role Wyoming has played in America’s history?”

And which items serve as the best invitation to explore and find out more. The book will debut as an e-book sometime in July, with a print edition to follow.

“The e-book will allow us to continue to make this available for years to come, even after we sell all of the printed copies,” Flesher said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"A New Happy Trail"}]

Just as the bronzes and book are meant to last, so, too, the “American Patriot Hymn,” written by Hollywood composer Jeff Lippencott especially for Wyoming. 

The three-movement work weaves narration from John Quincy Adams as well as portions of a poem attributed to Samuel Adams into a sweeping orchestral score meant to capture the grand sweep of Wyoming history.

Lippencott, who lives in Alpine, credits Wyoming’s wide-open spaces for helping inspire his symphonic work, including Grand Teton Suite and Pasturelands.

Even some of the state’s most adventurous America 250 plans are designed to stick around, such as the four-day 250 Trail Ride, which began in Evanston and follows a 500-mile, off-road route to Cheyenne, arriving just in time for the Fourth of July festivities.

Organizers have told Cowboy State Daily that the trail will become official with this ride, and will be available for future trailblazers who want to experience Wyoming in a unique way. 

Taken together — the bronzes, the book, the music, and even the new trail — it all says the same thing. Wyoming doesn’t just want to throw a 250th birthday bash. 

It wants to leave footprints that will still be visible when the next big anniversaries roll around.

Cody parade Chon Kit Leong via Alamy 7 1 26

<title>Wyoming’s Over-The-Top 250th Celebration Comes With Tanks, Flyovers, History | Cowboy State Daily</title>

From C-130 flyovers and tank parades to new monuments and a new state trail, Wyoming’s America 250 celebration isn’t a one-day bash. “We still have a lot to be thankful for in this country,” said one organizer about what's planned across the Cowboy State.

Wyoming’s Over-The-Top 250th Celebration Comes With Tanks, Flyovers, History

Kolby fedore

Kolby Fedore

Crime & Courts

Public Safety

UPDATE 11:50 a.m.: This story has been updated to include more information from the Wyoming Highway Patrol about those injured in the crash.

A commercial tanker truck driver failing to stop for traffic waiting to enter a one-lane construction zone west of Casper on Friday afternoon 

, killing two people and injuring eight others, the Wyoming Highway Patrol reports in a fatal crash summary of the incident released Wednesday.

The crash happened at 1:50 p.m. Friday on U.S. Highway 20/26 near mile marker 58.3, about 45 miles northwest of Casper wit the WHP having identified driver inattention as a possible contributing factor in the crash.

[{"type":"text","text":"As of Wednesday, no criminal charges had been announced."}]

Responding to Cowboy State Daily requests for information about whether any arrests have been made in relation to the crash and if anyone has been criminally charged, the WHP said that the investigation into the crash is active and information about potential criminal charges won’t be released until that’s been completed.

The fatal crash summary says that the westbound 2024 Western Star tanker truck failed to stop at mile marker 58.3 for queued traffic waiting to enter the construction zone before striking a Chevrolet Silverado, Toyota Highlander, Toyota 4Runner, Subaru Outback, Chevrolet Camaro, Ram 1500 and Chevrolet Impala.

[{"type":"text","text":"The crash involved eight vehicles and 17 people."}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Two people died, eight were injured and seven escaped injury."}]

A 3-year-old and an adult male in the Highlander were both transported to Banner Wyoming Medical Center via helicopter. Also, a 1-year-old and adult female in the same vehicle were taken to the hospital by ground ambulance, the WHP reports, adding they were treated and released.

Two others were also taken by ambulance to Casper, where they were treated and released.

The driver of the 4Runner and a passenger, an adult female and male, were also hospitalized at Banner Wyoming Medical Center in Casper. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Colorado Couple Identified"}]

The Natrona County Coroner's Office identified the two people killed as James Faris Cox, 74, and Susan Horn Cox, 69, of Golden, Colorado.

[{"type":"text","text":"The couple was traveling to Ennis, Montana, according to a family member."}]

Both were wearing seat belts, according to the Highway Patrol's crash summary.

The Highway Patrol said the weather was clear; the roadway was dry, and neither a rollover nor collision with a fixed object contributed to the crash.

[{"type":"text","text":"The investigation remains ongoing."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Aftermath"}]

Several motorists interviewed by Cowboy State Daily said they at first believed traffic had stopped because of the construction project ahead.

Erin Mills said she was driving toward Riverton after dropping her dogs off in Casper when traffic came to a standstill.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"I thought I was waiting on the pilot car,\" she said."}]

Like many others, Mills had already driven through the work zone earlier and expected another routine delay.

Instead, as traffic ahead slowly began turning around, she caught her first glimpse of the aftermath.

"When that camper moved, that's when I could see," she said. "I saw what looked like a shredded vehicle on the left-hand side of the road."

"I didn't physically see it happen," she continued. "I was behind it and saw the aftermath."

From where she was, Mills said she saw a jackknifed fuel tanker and damaged vehicles scattered across the highway.

"It looked like a tanker just plowed through these vehicles," she said, emphasizing she was describing what the aftermath looked like, not what she actually saw happen.

The WHP’s crash summary confirms the commercial tanker struck the line of stopped traffic after failing to stop.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"'Something Wrong'"}]

Another witness, Krista Nethercott, also believed traffic had stopped because of construction.

"There were these pylons on the right-hand side that kind of tell you there's construction," she said. "But there wasn't anything alerting you to slow down. There wasn't a flagger."

After several minutes, she stepped out of her vehicle because, she said, "I just felt like there was something wrong."

When she walked forward, she realized the line of stopped vehicles was the result of a catastrophic crash.

"That's when I could see there were cars on both sides of the road," she said.

A funeral director, Nethercott immediately ran toward the wreckage to make sure someone had called 911 and to offer assistance.

[{"type":"text","text":"Working alongside another bystander, she checked on James and Susan Cox."}]

"The gentleman was immediately deceased," she said. "The lady probably lived a couple minutes."

[{"type":"text","text":"She recalled that both appeared to have been wearing their seat belts."}]

Their pickup was so badly crushed, she said, that rescuers ultimately needed specialized equipment to remove the couple.

"If the woman had lived longer, I don't think this gentleman and I could have ever taken her out of the vehicle," she said. "That's how crushed it was."

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Before Help Arrived"}]

Because the crash happened in a remote stretch of western Natrona County, Nethercott estimated it took about 30 minutes before ambulances and firefighters reached the scene.

"It seemed like it was a long time to see paramedics," she said. "But considering you're out in the middle of nowhere, I don't think they could have gotten there any quicker."

Long before emergency crews arrived, however, strangers had already 

 Nethercott estimated roughly 10 motorists got out of their vehicles to help.

Some searched for fire extinguishers. Others comforted injured victims. One man who identified himself as working at a pediatric clinic checked on a young child who remained safely secured in a five-point car seat while the child's injured father tried to comfort him.

"There were people left and right getting out of their vehicles and trying to find anything that could be used," Nethercott said. "Whether it's water, an emergency medical kit or a fire extinguisher."

[{"type":"text","text":"The Natrona County Fire District later praised those bystanders."}]

"Crews would like to send a heartfelt thank you to all the bystanders who assisted victims immediately after the crash, while waiting for help to arrive, as well as while responders were on-scene, offering shelter during the passing of a thunder cell, emotional support and minor patient care," the agency said in a statement.

"The true spirit of the 'Wyoming Way' was in full force this day,” the statement adds.

Although there was little anyone could do medically for Susan Cox, Nethercott said they made sure she wasn't alone. 

"We told her help was coming,” she said. "We don't know what happens when people are unconscious, but we wanted her to know somebody was there."

Only then did Nethercott turn her attention to survivors who still could be saved.

Double fatal highway sign 7 1 26

<title>Highway Patrol: Tanker Truck Plowed Into Vehicles In Last Week’s Double Fatal Crash | Cowboy State Daily</title>

The cause of last week’s double fatal crash in remote Natrona County was due to a commercial tanker truck driver who failed to stop for traffic in a construction zone, the Wyoming Highway Patrol said Wednesday. The investigation is active.

Highway Patrol: Tanker Truck Plowed Into Vehicles In Last Week’s Double Fatal Crash

Employee kate meadows cropped

Kate Meadows

Government & Politics

Speculation is growing over whether a data center could be linked to a rare bacterium discovered in Cheyenne's reuse wastewater system earlier this year, as city officials continue to withhold the identity of the industrial user responsible for the discharge.

Four days after the Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities publicly disclosed the contamination, which happened in February, officials have yet to identify either the company or the industry involved, saying legal and regulatory reviews are still underway.

"It would be likely that a newer industry would be responsible," said Jonathan Brant, a University of Wyoming associate professor of civil and architectural engineering who specializes in water treatment. "Data center discharges would be the first place I would look."

The Board of Public Utilities has fielded multiple public records requests as residents demand to know what industry is behind the hazardous discharge, who the offender is and why the public wasn’t notified as soon as the contaminant was discovered in February.

“Citizens deserve to know what industry contaminated the wastewater,” said Exie Brown Jr., a Republican vying for a House District 9 seat on the Wyoming House of Representatives.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Background"}]

Last week, the Board of Public Utilities reminded its customers via public notice that discharge of hazardous substances into the sanitary sewer system is prohibited.

The notice came four months after its lab staff detected an “unusual bacterium” during routine wastewater sampling in February.

The mystery bacterium was found to be cupriavidus gilardii, a naturally occurring organism commonly found in soil and groundwater environments, known for its high resistance to metals. It has been associated with industrial applications involving metal reduction processes, including some advanced manufacturing and industrial systems.

“It is new to us,” said Erin Lamb, BOPU’s administrative and public affairs coordinator. “We have a pretty robust lab and sampling protocol. It’s something that popped up and we thought it was odd, so we reached out to the public health lab.”

[{"type":"text","text":"The city’s reuse water system was taken offline as a precaution."}]

According to the public notice, BOPU staff have undertaken “significant remediation efforts,” draining and disinfecting the entire reuse water system and the city’s Prairie View retention pond to eliminate bacterial presence.

Reuse water irrigation services resumed Monday, after consultation with the Laramie County Public Health Department. By Tuesday, the retention pond was being refilled.

The contaminant affected the city’s reusable water system – water used strictly for irrigation, Lamb said.

Lamb said people are confusing the wastewater system with the drinking-water system, and she reiterated that the hazard affected the wastewater reuse system only.

“I think that’s been very confusing to people. It’s not our water system. It’s our reuse wastewater system," she said.

The source was eventually traced to an “industrial user within the system.” 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Mystery Industrial User"}]

Lamb told Cowboy State Daily the BOPU’s holdout to publicly identify the industrial user behind the contaminant is to ensure all local, state and federal regulations are being followed.

Speculation is growing over whether a data center could be linked to pollution discovered in Cheyenne's reuse wastewater system earlier this year, as city officials haven't reported the identity of the industrial user responsible for the discharge.

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