Massive transmission project gets green light

Millard County commissioners approved two conditional use permits last week for an ambitious power transmission project that could deliver $477 million in tax receipts to the county over the life of the endeavor.

TransWest Express (TWE), a subsidiary of Denver-based, privately-held Anschutz Corporation, is planning to start construction next year on a 730-mile power transmission project stretching from wind farms in Wyoming, crossing portions of Colorado and Utah, to a sub-station in Nevada, potentially delivering 3,000 megawatts of renewable energy to customers throughout the Southwest. That amount of electricity is enough to power 1.8 million homes annually. About 93 miles of new transmission line as well as an electric converter station would be located in Millard County. The converter station would be used to convert high voltage direct current electricity into alternating current power. The new power lines would be built mostly on federal lands inside the county. Three percent would stretch across state land and 6 percent would cross private land, according to a permit application on file with the county. Millard County Chronicle Progress

Coyotes and Deer Focus of New Study

Just how many fawns do coyotes kill? And how does the killing affect the number of mule deer in Utah? What about efforts to control coyotes? How effective are those efforts? And how do those efforts help deer in the state?

Biologists with the Division of Wildlife Resources want to know. In cooperation with Brigham Young University and Utah State University, they’re launching a study to find out.

The study on Monroe Mountain is just one of several things the DWR and its partners are doing to help mule deer in Utah. In just the past six years, tens of millions of dollars have been spent to help the state’s deer herds by restoring deer habitat, reducing highway mortality, and stopping deer poachers. KCSG Television

Richfield sales tax revenue up

At the end of the 2010-11 fiscal year, Richfield City saw an increase of 1.85 percent in collected sales tax revenue. The slight increase was seen as a hopeful sign that the local economy had reached the bottom of the business cycle. From July to December, Richfield City has collected $852,135 in sales tax revenue, which is up 8.56 percent from the previous year. The increase is $67,219 over the same period during the previous year. Richfield Reaper