This is your daily news rundown for Thursday, July 9. In this edition:
- Utah is under an extreme heat watch this weekend. Here's how to stay safe
- Mantua Reservoir is under a danger advisory for a harmful algae bloom
- The legislature paused an effort to assert its power over ballot initiatives
A record-breaking heat wave is coming for Utah this weekend
Parts of northern Utah could break records thanks to a heat wave rolling across the West this weekend.
An extreme heat watch from the National Weather Service predicts highs up to 105, which is 15 degrees above seasonal normals.
That would beat Logan’s current heat record, which was set nearly a century ago. Other areas like Bear River and Duchesne could also break all-time highs.
To avoid heat-related illness, stay inside with air conditioning if you can, especially from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some communities have cooling centers for this purpose.
If you do need to be outside, wear lightweight, light-colored clothes, drink lots of water, and find shade when possible. Watch for signs of heat illness, such as dizziness and muscle cramping.
Mantua Reservoir is under a ‘danger advisory’ for a harmful algae bloom
Health officials are urging Box Elder residents and visitors to avoid Mantua Reservoir because of a harmful algae bloom.
The Utah Division of Water Quality issued a danger advisory for the reservoir, which is the highest advisory level for these blooms.
That means visitors shouldn’t swim, water ski, or boat at the reservoir. Keep pets away and don’t drink the water or get it in your mouth.
If you choose to fish, clean the fish well and discard any guts. The effects of these toxins on aquatic life isn’t well understood.
Those who come in contact with harmful algal blooms can get respiratory symptoms and skin, eye, and throat irritation. Ingesting it can cause headaches, vomiting, and kidney or liver damage. It can be fatal for dogs and other animals.
The legislature is pausing an effort to challenge ballot initiatives
The Utah State Legislature is, for the moment, abandoning a plan to change how much influence they can have over citizen ballot initiatives.
Voters passed an anti-gerrymandering law, known as Proposition 4, in 2018. Since then, Republican lawmakers have looked for ways to modify or override ballot initiatives.
They tried to put a constitutional amendment doing just that in the 2024 ballot, but the Utah Supreme Court voided it.
This year, lawmakers planned to try again, but House Speaker Mike Schultz confirmed on Wednesday they are instead waiting for ongoing litigation around Prop 4.
Better Boundaries, the group that sponsored Prop 4, suggested the move was because ballot initiatives are popular among Utahns. The group added that they expect the legislature to try other avenues to assert their power over citizen-led initiatives.
