Home Care In Sevier, UT

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Environmentalists filed a lawsuit on Monday to prevent the construction of a new potash mine that they say would devastate a lake ecosystem in the drought-stricken western Utah desert.

The complaint against the Bureau of Land Management is the latest development in the battle over potash in Utah, which holds some of the United States’ largest deposits of the mineral used by farmers to fertilize crops worldwide.

Potash, or potassium sulfate, is currently mined in regions including Carlsbad, New Mexico and at Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats, where the Bureau of Land Management also oversees a private company’s potash mining operations.

The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance argues in Monday’s complaint that, in approving a potash mining operation at Sevier Lake — a shallow saltwater lake about halfway between Salt Lake City and Las Vegas — the Bureau of Land Management failed to consider alternatives that would cause fewer environmental impacts. They say the project could imperil the regional groundwater aquifer already plagued by competing demands from surrounding cities, farms and a nearby wildlife refuge.

“Industrial development of this magnitude will eliminate the wild and remote nature of Sevier Lake and the surrounding lands, significantly impair important habitat for migratory birds, and drastically affect important resource values including air quality, water quality and quantity and visual resources,” the group’s attorneys write in the complaint.

The Bureau of Land Management’s Utah office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The complaint comes months after Peak Minerals, the company developing the Sevier Lake mine, announced it had secured a $30 million loan from an unnamed investor. In a press release, leaders of the company and the private equity firm that owns it touted the project’s ability “to support long-term domestic fertilizer availability and food security in North America in a product.”

Demand for domestic sources of potash has spiked since the start of the war in Ukraine as sanctions and supply chain issues disrupted exports from Russia and Belarus — two of the world’s primary potash producers. As a fertilizer, potash lacks of some of climate change concerns of nitrogen- and phosphorous-based fertilizers, which require greenhouse gases to produce or can leach into water sources. As global supply has contracted and prices have surged, potash project backers from Brazil to Canada renewed pushes to expand or develop new mines.

That was also the case in Utah. Before the March announcement of $30 million in new funds, the Sevier Playa Potash project had been on hold due to a lack of investors. In 2020, after the Bureau of Land Management approved the project, the mining company developing it pulled out after failing to raise necessary capital.

Peak Minerals did not immediately respond to request for comment on the lawsuit.

In a wet year, Sevier Lake spans 195 square miles (506 square kilometers) in an undeveloped part of rural Utah and is part of the same prehistoric lakebed as the Great Salt Lake. The lake remains dry the majority of the time but fills several feet in wet years and serves as a stop-over for migratory birds.

The project is among many fronts in which federal agencies are fighting environmentalists over public lands and how to balance conservation concerns with efforts to boost domestic production of sought-after minerals for goods ranging from agriculture to batteries to semiconductors. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance opposed the project throughout the environmental review process, during which it argued the Bureau of Land Management did not consider splitting the lake by approving mining operations on its southern half and protecting a wetland on its northern end.

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This story was first published on Aug. 1, 2023. It was updated on Aug. 2, 2023 to correct that the U.S. does not consider potash a critical mineral. The U.S. took potash off its critical minerals list in 2022.

Three Tennessee counties subsidize a significant portion of the state’s tax collection, sending in more than double the dollars they receive, an analysis of legislative spending and state budget data from 2023 shows.

Tennessee’s Office of Legislative Budget Analysis released its county-by-county reports last month, spanning from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023, and showed the state spent $18.4 billion across the 95 counties.

But, the distribution is not equal. A Lookout analysis of various tax collections over the same period found the state collected $5.7 billion in Nashville-Davidson, Sevier and Williamson counties, with those communities receiving $2.3 billion back, a difference of $3.4 billion.

A Flourish data visualization

Tennessee’s tax system — with no income tax — relies heavily on sales taxes to fund its various functions. This creates a system where communities with larger populations and high tourism contribute more to state coffers.

But the highest generators are only sometimes the ones losing out the most. In Shelby County, Tennessee’s largest, the state spends about the same amount it collects because of costs related to TennCare.

Tennessee’s legislative budget office has tracked state spending in each county since at least 2012, but there are better ways to see the impact than following exact dollar amounts.

This is because that state almost always collects more local taxes than it sends back to the counties to put money in its rainy day account and fund programs that don’t impact a specific county.

Instead, the Lookout’s analysis examined the percentage of contributions and distributions, showing that 14 counties contribute more taxes than they receive back. On the flip side, 50 counties receive 50% or more money from the state than they contribute.

A Lookout analysis of the same data in 2022 found 16 Tennessee counties propping up the other 79.

Analysis: How Nashville and its suburbs subsidize Tennessee’s state government

The legislative office’s county-by-county reports track spending in 32 categories. TennCare, education, prisons and state employee retirement payments are often the largest state-funded portions.

Bledsoe, Lake, Trousdale, Morgan and Johnson were the five counties that benefited the most from this tax distribution system because of state prison spending, which provides government-funded jobs.

Methodology

This story’s data tracks the fiscal year 2022-23, from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023.

The Office of Legislative Budget Analysis provides state spending data in each county. The data includes federal and state expenditures in each county. Scraping the data from all 95 PDFs provided here produced an exact number for how much Tennessee specifically expends in each county.

The total spent in all counties for the fiscal year 2022-23 was around $18.4 billion.

The state estimated it would collect around $22.1 billion from various taxes, according to Tennessee’s state budget (see page A-62)

The Tennessee Department of Revenue tracks sales, business, privilege and mixed drink taxes collected in each county. This totals $14.9 billion in the fiscal year 2022-23. The link to the data is here.

The rest of the taxes collected totaled $6.2 billion (page A-62 of the state budget).

The Lookout used the average of two methods to calculate each county’s contribution to these other taxes which are mainly excise, franchise and gasoline taxes.

For the first method, the Lookout distributed the $6.2 billion in other taxes based on the percent of state’s population in each county from the 2020 U.S. Census.

For the second method, reporters took the percent of Tennessee’s total GDP generated by each county in the latest year available and multiplied it by those taxes. The data is available here from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The Lookout averaged the two numbers for each county and then added those to the Department of Revenue’s numbers tracking sales, business, privilege and mixed drink taxes collected to get a revenue generated number for each county.

To produce the percentages in the chart above the Lookout divided the amount of taxes each county generated divided by the total taxes collected (State taxes collected). Then divided, the amount the state spent in each county divided by the entire state county expenses (State’s redistribution).

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SEVIER COUNTY, Utah — The Sevier County school bus driver arrested for DUI while on his route with children on board last week has been fired. However, the question of why the driver was hired in the first place remains unanswered.

David Oldroyd, 57, was taken off his bus Friday after an anonymous tip led the sheriff's office to confront the driver in front of South Sevier Middle School. Although the arrest occurred at the middle school, Oldroyd's bus picks up students from all schools in the district.

"Honestly, it’s surprising because stuff like that, you don’t hear of that very often," said parent Dixie Christopherson.

After being taken off his route to the Sevier County Jail, document say Oldroyd registered a blood alcohol content level three times the legal limit.

"It's terrifying," added Christopherson. "That's terrifying.

"There’s a very good chance that whoever anonymous tipped knew the guy and was throwing a friend under the bus for the protection of the kids."

Court documents who Oldroyd's has been charged with two other misdemeanors involving alcohol just this year. In April,he was cited for drinking in a vehicle while in September 2022 he was charged for intoxication.

"I know the school does very deep background checks," said Christopherson. "I work with the school and I had to go through rigorous background checks before I was allowed to help at the school.

Sevier School District Superintendent Cade Douglas declined to speak with FOX 13 News, but issued a statement explaining how the district's system works. He said all employees are required to undergo a background check and that background check adds the employee to a database that continually monitors them for serious crimes.

While the district added it receives notifications accordingly and investigates immediately, Douglas claims they never received a notification about Oldroyd’s prior misdemeanors.

"It’s sad that something slipped through, but I’m glad that it was caught before anything bad happened," said Christopherson.

Some parents who had students on Oldroyd's bus say they never heard from the district about what had happened. Douglas explained that’s because parents were informed through the middle school’s notification system, meaning parents of elementary school students were left in the dark.

The superintendent said he’ personally reached out to those elementary school parents to explain.

Copyright 2023 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

UT Extension offers resources and suggestions for families making to switch to home-based virtual learning due to COVID-19.

“Well, I guess we’ll just figure it out…I’m not prepared for this!” These are the thoughts and emotions of many parents across the country as school reopening plans and fall options continue to be unveiled. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted many aspects of our daily lives, and now it is further impacting the education system and the rhythms of life affected by school.

University of Tennessee Extension specialist Heather Sedges is in the same boat, deciding what is best for her family and making plans accordingly. The human development specialist is providing advice and resources to parents and families who are navigating this new reality and who may choose a home-based schooling option for the very first time.

“The single most important factor in having a successful fall with your child will be managing expectations,” states the human development specialist. “Establishing a routine and helping your child understand what to expect from you, and what to expect from themselves, will provide structure and help maintain a positive and productive environment. Modeling flexibility is a real positive that can come of this experience, so go easy on yourself and the children when things don’t go as planned.”

Sedges says, “You’re not trying to recreate an in-school classroom schedule. Instead, the goal is to find what works best for you and your household that incorporates learning and accomplishing assignments from the school.”

Experts agree a maximum of 90 minutes of work-time, broken into 5-10 minute segments throughout the day is attainable for kindergarten, first or second grade students. Children in grades 3-5 should spend no more than two hours on schoolwork each day, broken into 10-15-minute segments, and for older children, plan for three hours each day, in 30-45-minute blocks.

With these guidelines in mind, Sedges suggests families schedule their days, with a set start time and end time, and with a regular pattern for when it’s time for school, when it’s time for play, and when it’s time for chores or time together as a family. “Be sure to include physical activity- you’ll be surprised what a quick walk around the block will do for concentration”, Sedges shared.

Regardless of the schedule that works best, creating an environment that is conducive to learning is important. This might be an area of the kitchen table or an actual desk, but designating a space for learning and clearing that area of potential distractions will be very helpful. Sedges emphasizes the importance of involving your children in creating their workspace and encourages thinking outside of the box. “Children love ‘nooks’ to read in—even if it’s a blanket thrown over two chairs, it’s a novel and interesting place where a child can peacefully and safely escape.” Spending a fortune isn’t necessary either, she says. “Decorating an unused container is a fun and easy way to personalize the space. Now is the time for using those ideas from your Pinterest boards!”

“Ultimately, having patience and grace for both you and your child is the most important advice we can share with parents navigating this difficult season,” adds Sedges. “Remember everyone in your family is on the same team and expect for things to not go as planned sometimes.”

“Be sure to contact your local county Extension office for help as well,” urges Sedges. “There are 4-H and family and consumer science agents in every county who can assist you and help you find local resources as you navigate this new season as a family.”

Many resources for families navigating this season are listed below, including specific web pages built by UT’s College of Education, Health and Human Sciences for parents teaching grades Pre-K-5 and grades 6-12 at home this fall.

Through its land-grant mission of research, teaching and extension, the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. utia.tennessee.edu?.

Image courtesy Unsplash

Finally, a place that can explain how all the folks on Rocky Top get their corn from a jar.

SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. — It's one of the first-ever legitimate moonshine tours in the world, at least that's the way it starts off.

Tennessee Shine Company is a relatively new player to the moonshine game in Sevier County, opening up its original distillery in Wears Valley less than 10 years ago.

Now, the moonshine company has four locations in Sevier County with their newest one right on the Parkway and home to the ‘Moonshine Tour.’

About 5,000 square feet of the massive storefront are dedicated to an immersive history museum, detailing moonshine's impact on the lives of East Tennesseans.

Casey Treat with Tennessee Shine Comapny gave 10News a tour, along with moonshiners Red Utley and Mike Cockrell.

Cockrell is most known for his role on the show 'Moonshiners,' which airs on the Discovery Channel. He and Utley helped build the attraction.

RELATED: Chattanooga man gets nationally recognized on TV for making great moonshine

It starts with a look at an old bootlegging truck, touches on the history of moonshine in Appalachia, shows visitors the main ingredients in any batch of the drink and walks them through the original distilling process.

There are stops along the way for moonshine myth-busting and distillery disasters. A small movie theater plays clips about the history of the company and moonshine's role in the last few hundred years of the area.

Bourbon the Bear sits next to the old distillery, a display that turns on with a push of a button. Bourbon will growl if visitors get too close to him.

Treat said the addition of a black bear highlights some of the dangers historic moonshiners faced while distilling.

"You're mashing in fruit and stuff like that and you're mashing it out in the woods," said Utley. "You're gonna have a draw for bears to come in just like any other food source."

The next stop is a look at moonshine's impact on NASCAR, including the real car from a head distiller and NASCAR driver Blake Jones.

"NASCAR stands for 'non-athletic sport centered around rednecks,'" said Utley. "You just drive fast and turn left."

Moonshine's role in pop culture and prohibition are highlighted, complete with a trip to the big house if you got caught and were thrown behind bars. Or worse, sent to the electric chair.

RELATED: UT researchers tackle science behind the smoothness of Tennessee whiskey

It all comes together to give you a taste of why moonshine matters.

"That's the way people put bread on the table back 100 years ago," said Cockrell. "It was currency, it was just as good as a dollar bill. It built this country as we know it today."

Treat said the idea came to the team as they were planning their Sevierville location, wanting to make this moonshine experience different from others.

"There's really nothing like that, nothing for the folks to really experience," he said. "Anybody can go through to any distillery and taste it but when you get to walk through and see the whole process start to finish, we'll be making liquor on-site, and knowing that we do everything here traditionally it's gonna make the difference."

This location is only a week old, so there are still some finishing touches to come. Soon visitors will see some of the machinery and can watch the distilling process in action.

Tennessee Shine Company offers free moonshine and wine tastings for visitors. Tickets for the history tour are $10.