From the pages of
Sublette Examiner
Volume 3, Number 45 - February 5, 2004
brought to you online by Pinedale Online

Bench Corral plowing, fuel system proposed

by Cat Urbigkit

Sublette County Commission Chairman Gordon Johnston said in Tuesday's commission meeting that he gave approval for the county road department to plow the road into the Bench Corral elk feedground.

Johnston said that the Wyoming Game and Fish Department is running out of hay at the feedground and needed assistance getting more hay to the site. Johnston said the county has agreed to plow the road, about five miles in length, to get hay to the feedground.

Interim Sublette County Road Superintendent Travis Sour and Undersheriff Henry Schmidt spoke with the commission about their proposal to implement a new card system for fuel for county vehicles.

Sour explained that the county would be able to keep better track of fuel, with per-unit tracking, and that information could be loaded onto a computer system as well.

Schmidt said the county is currently using a key system which is nearly maxed out. He said expansion of the current system would cost $7,800, but the card system would provide more units and cost $10,000.

The commission approved going to the card system for the county.

In other business, Commissioner Bill Cramer pointed out that with the recent death of Dick Thomson, it was brought to attention that Thompson Lakes had been named after the Thomsons at some point in the past, but the name had been misspelled "Thompson."

"If that's the case, I think we should correct that," Cramer said. The commission requested that County Surveyor Paul Scherbel check into the matter and report back to the commission about resolving the matter.

Lance Koppenhafer gave a report on the ag center at the fairgrounds. He said the ag center board is still working on final resolution of the leaking roof problem as well as the odor problem in the building. Koppenhafer said that the board has learned it needs to change the dirt more often in the building, but is currently trying a new product to combat the odor problem. Koppenhafer added that the board plans to install a sump system for the building and may end up installing a leach field as well. John Fear was reappointed to the ag center board for a three-year term.

Susan Kramer of Sublette Citizens for Recycling spoke with commissioners about the need for a used county vehicle for the recycling program. Commissioners noted that Schmidt had reported the Sublette County Sheriff's Office had a pickup the recycling group could have, with the commission's approval. The commission granted that approval.

The commission has received notice from the Office of Homeland Security that the county would receive $11,838 for the purchase of equipment for first-responders in the county as part of the homeland security program.

The commission took no action on a proposal that five Wyoming counties join in hiring a consultant to review Bureau of Land Management planning documents and provide comment on behalf of those counties. The consultant proposed a fee of $85 per hour to review BLM resource-management plans as the planning process proceeds for revision of these documents in the Rawlins, Kemmerer and Pinedale resource areas. Counties would include Lincoln, Uinta, Sublette, Sweetwater and Carbon. Unlike some of the other counties, Sublette County has been granted cooperating-agency status in the preparation of the Pinedale RMP and Johnston has played an active role on the planning team for the revision process. The commission decided to hold off and see what action is taken by the other counties.

Alan Shaffer of Boulder was appointed to the Sublette County Fair Board. Shaffer will take the seat on the board left vacant when Karla Holloway did not seek re-appointment.

Commissioner Betty Fear was absent from Tuesday's commission meeting.

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