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This is the May 11 - May 24, 1996 update.


May 24, 1996
Contact Vicki Varela, 538-1503
or Paula Ernstrom, 538-1509

Listed below are the highlights of Governor Mike Leavitt's activities over the past two weeks. Please call if you have any questions.

  • Issued an executive order to help rapidly growing communities protect the scenery, recreation opportunities, wildlife habitat, agriculture and watersheds that are part of Utah's rich heritage and that make Utah the best place to live in America. "Part of the heritage of Utah is the patchworks of green that dot our landscapes, the ponds where our children fish and ice skate, the fields where we grow crops and learn the value of hard work, the wide open pastures where wildlife roam," the governor said. "As we plan for the future, we have the opportunity and the responsibility to protect this sacred heritage. There is only one chance to protect open space. When it's gone it's gone. If we plan carefully now, we can build homes and save open lands. It is our duty to protect our land so that our children and grandchildren can enjoy the beauty and traditions we have known." The executive order creates a Utah Open Lands Committee, which will be a catalyst for locally initiated efforts to conserve open lands. The committee will help local communities identify open land conservation projects, initiated by local interests, to be submitted to future state legislative sessions for authorization. In addition to his statewide initiative, the governor will request that city and county leaders in growth-affected areas of the state establish local Open Lands committees. Protection of open space is a priority of the Leavitt administration. He included it as one of three topics in the unprecedented Growth Summit held last December. An initiative similar to today's executive order was discussed in the legislative session, but the bill that passed the Legislature was vetoed by Leavitt because it didn't adequately address the governor's goal to protect open space. The governor's order was issued at the Utah State University Botanical Center in Kaysville. The Center is being developed on open lands in a rapidly growing residential area to provide a place of education, recreation and conservation. Visitors will learn environmental sensitivity and preservation through the center's university and extension courses, lectures, outdoor classrooms, and garden tours. The center will provide a place of refuge for people and wildlife habitat. City, county and state agencies have partnered with USU to develop the center. "The Kaysville refuge was made possible through the partnership of people who have a common goal; to preserve and protect the wonders of Utah," the governor said. "The newly established Utah Open Lands Committee creates a tool for land lovers all over the state to work creatively toward the protection of our land." The committee will inventory and identify state land which isn't necessary to agency missions to identify whether partnerships may be formed to preserve the land as open space. Proposals requiring legislative approval will be submitted to the Legislature. In addition, conservation techniques will be identified for preserving wildlife habitat, watershed, agricultural or recreational land that is in danger. Information and technical assistance will be provided to local governments that pursue similar endeavors. Members of the governor's Open Space Committee will represent a broad range of state and local representatives from the public and private sectors. Leavitt's directors of natural resources, transportation, administrative services, environmental quality, agriculture, and sate planning coordinator will serve in ex officio roles. County and city representatives, a builder or developer, conservationist, financial expert, professional planner, and agricultural land owner will also be included. Others may be added by the governor. Because the federal government owns 64 percent of the land in Utah, the governor formally requests in the executive order that federal agencies participate through the contribution of revenue or land, and by strengthening existing partnerships.


  • Signed a drought disaster declaration for San Juan County. "I have been very concerned about the extreme drought conditions in southeastern Utah and the challenges these conditions create for the cattle and wheat industry," Governor Leavitt said. "This declaration makes available several resources aimed at assisting Utah farmers, ranchers, communities and individuals affected by the lack of water." The declaration makes low interest federal loans available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Agency to farmers and ranchers in San Juan and surrounding counties. It also allows the Utah Division of Comprehensive Emergency Management to call on the Utah National Guard to transport water and feed for livestock in the affected areas. Farmers and ranchers may also use previously restricted grazing lands that have been held in a federal set-aside program.


  • Pursued federal funds for a light rail system in Utah. During a meeting with Representative Frank Wolf, chairman of the House Transportation Appropriation Subcommittee, Governor Leavitt received a pledge for 80 percent federal funding for Salt Lake valley's light rail project. "One the highest priorities of my administration is solving the transportation problems along the I-15 corridor and light rail will help us with the solution," the governor said. "The issue now is whether we receive the federal funding in drops or in a stream." The governor also said that Salt Lake City being the host for the 2002 Olympics gives Utah's light rail project an advantage over other similar project seeking federal funding. The House is expected to go along with Representative Wolf's commitment.


  • Joined with 40,000 Utahns to clean up the state. Governor Leavitt visited several communities across the state as part of Take Pride in Utah Day. "It is exciting to see so many individuals working together to make our state shine, especially during our centennial year," the governor said. Leavitt started the morning pulling weeds and pruning trees with his family at the state's Centennial Legacy Project, This is the Place State Park. Next, he received a tour of the future site of the Utah State University Botanical Gardens in Kaysville. This project was also part of the Martha Hughes Cannon Centennial Service-A-Thon under the direction of First Lady Jackie Leavitt. Students from Davis County High Schools received pledges for their hours of service at the project to raise money for the Martha Hughes Cannon statue that will be placed in the Capitol Rotunda. In central Utah, Governor Leavitt dedicated the Juab County's Centennial Legacy Project, Old Mill Park in downtown Nephi. He also visited Gunnison where he joined with the mayor and county officials to unveil a sign built by volunteers marking the entrance to the cemetery. In Orem, Governor Leavitt visited a low income neighborhood where more than 1,000 volunteers had spent the day cleaning, landscaping yards and painting houses.


  • Named the 1996 recipients of the annual Governor's Medal for Science and Technology. The Governor's Medal is awarded in recognition of individuals who have provided distinguished service to the state in science and technology. "It is a privilege for Utah to honor these individuals for the far reaching impact of their contributions to our quality of life," Leavitt said. "Utah's capacity to innovate in science and technology will sustain long-term economic growth. The contributions of these distinguished scientists, ranging from seismic research and engineering, to solid rocket propellants for the space shuttle, to neuroprosthetics, demonstrates the vast scope of scientific talent and dedication in our state." The 1996 recipients of the Governor's Medal are:


    • ACADEMIC
    Dr. Carl Anthon Ernstrom, River Heights
    Dr. Richard A. Normann, SLC
    Dr. Morris J. Robins, Provo

    INDUSTRY
    Dr. Dinesh Patel, Murray
    Dr. Harold W. Ritchey, Ogden
    Dr. Lawrence D. Reaveley, SLC

    GOVERNMENT
    Dr. Walter J. Arabasz, SLC
    Mr. Von Del Chamberlain, SLC

    EDUCATION
    Dr. Walter L. Saunders, Logan

  • Praised members of the tourism industry and the Utah Travel Council for their efforts to make tourism a key part of the state's economy. This came during the Governor's Conference on Tourism in Logan. Governor Leavitt encouraged the members of the tourism industry to not only focus on the natural beauty of our state, but the rich heritage as well. The governor also took the opportunity to share what his vision of the economic resettlement of Utah. He described rural Utah as a place where people will telecommute to their jobs and live in harmony with nature. "There will be that combination of having a quality of life that attracts people to rural Utah and a strong economy that is a combination of natural resources, tourism, and the types of businesses that can be productive in these areas," the governor said.


  • Joined with the Utah Academic Library Consortium and Ameritech Library Services to announce the electronic linking of the libraries at Utah's eleven colleges and universities. "This partnership goes a long way to build state-wide infrastructure for education and distance learning programs. It's exciting to think that a high school student anywhere in the state will soon have access to the wealth of information housed at the institutions of higher education," the governor said. This agreement will allow students and faculty to access information held by the state's universities and colleges through the Internet from school and allow Utah's citizens access to the libraries from their personal computers. The system is currently being used by the library at Utah Valley State College and the Eccles Health Science Library at the University of Utah. The other colleges and universities will all be added to the link over the next two years.


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