This is your daily news rundown for Monday, June 1. In this edition:
- This Utah leader wants the Stratos data center to downsize
- Boats were pulled from the Great Salt Lake Marina because of low water levels
- Electrical power is coming to Goblin Valley State Park
Utah’s Senate President wants the Stratos data center to massively downsize
Senate President J. Stuart Adams is calling for a massive reduction of the proposed Stratos Project data center in Box Elder County.
Adams is also the chair of Utah’s Military Installation Development Authority, or MIDA, a quasi-government agency that backed the controversial data center project.
In a letter to celebrity investor Kevin O’Leary, who’s pushing the project, Adams demanded the data center shrink its footprint — both physically, by 75%, and environmentally.
That includes reducing water demand, sending any excess water to Great Salt Lake, and protecting wildlife and agricultural uses in the area.
Boats were pulled out of the Great Salt Lake Marina because of low water levels
Two dozen boats were pulled out of the Great Salt Lake Marina over the weekend because of low water levels.
Boats with a deep draft, where the bottom lies lower in the water, are the most likely to hit the lakebed and get stuck. That can damage both the boat and boat slips.
Sailboat owners hired a crane to pull 24 boats out of the marina before damage could happen.
More boats are expected to be pulled out in the coming months, especially with the effects of Utah’s record low snowpack year, but lake access won’t be shut off.
Goblin Valley is now approved to get electrical power
Power is finally coming to Goblin Valley State Park.
The remote but popular site in Emery County is currently off the electrical grid, relying instead on generator-based power.
The Bureau of Land Management approved a 15-kilovolt transmission line on Friday. That’s after an environmental assessment determined the project wouldn’t have a significant impact on the area.
This will allow the Utah Division of Facilities Construction and Management to build a series of powerlines mostly alongside State Route 24.
It’s not clear yet when the lines will be installed or when Goblin Valley will start getting power.
