This is your daily news rundown for Wednesday, Feb. 4. In this edition:
- The latest attempt to change Utah's vote-by-mail system has stalled in the Legislature
- A fatal disease that affects hooved animals was found in Carbon County
- The world’s largest acidic geyser started erupting again after five years
Utah’s latest vote-by-mail bill has been stalled
Utah’s latest bill to change its popular vote-by-mail system has stalled in the Legislature.
House Bill 479 would require voters to opt in to return their ballot by mail or dropbox. Voters would also have to show ID when returning their ballot, which would mean municipalities would need to staff dropboxes.
The bill’s sponsor, Republican Rep. Jefferson Burton, said it was needed for election integrity and security.
However, concerns were raised about the cost and accessibility of staffing dropboxes, and the effects on disabled, elderly, and rural voters.
Democratic Rep. Andrew Stoddard also said they should wait and see the effects on last year’s election bill that made vote-by-mail opt-in.
It passed through the House, but on Tuesday, a Senate committee voted unanimously to hold the bill and move on to other agenda items — a move that makes it unlikely to advance in the last few days of the legislative session.
Chronic wasting disease has been found in Carbon County
A fatal, contagious disease affecting animals with hooves has been discovered in Carbon County.
Chronic wasting disease, which affects the nervous system of animals like deer, elk, and moose, was first detected in Utah’s mule deer in 2002.
The Department of Wildlife Resources tested over 2,000 samples for chronic wasting disease since last July, and 83 were confirmed positive.
That includes a case in Scofield, which is a new area for the disease.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the risk of humans contracting chronic wasting disease is extremely low, but consuming meat from infected animals is still not recommended.
The world’s largest acidic geyser started erupting again after five years
The world’s largest acidic geyser has started actively erupting again for the first time in over five years.
The Echinus Geyser in Yellowstone is a rarity, as acidic water usually breaks down the rocks that would make up the geyser. This geyser, however, mixes acidic gases and neutral waters, making it not acidic enough to eat away at the rock — closer to the acidity of vinegar.
It was regularly active in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, then again in 2017, but hasn’t erupted at all since December 2020.
Then, in February, scientists started observing regular eruptions, the first in about a decade.
However, the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory said this doesn't mean the geyser will remain active into the more-popular summer, as ittends to wake up for a month or two before going back to sleep.
