States to share river water in times of drought

LAS VEGAS — A top federal official plans to sign a sweeping interstate water sharing agreement next week that could blunt the impact of drought on the Colorado River and secure more water for southern Nevada, officials said.

The document, to be signed Dec. 13 by Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne would extend until 2026 guidelines for determining surpluses and shortages of river water and for operating the key Lake Mead and Lake Powell reservoirs during shortages like the drought that has gripped the region since 2001.

Beer tax faces possible increase CHEYENNE — Here’s a tax increase sure to make people cry in their beer. That’s right: Lawmakers are considering a tax increase on beer, and proponents say the mental health and substance abuse treatment that would benefit are good causes. Wyoming currently taxes beer at two cents per gallon. A draft bill before the Select Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse would raise that to 6.5 cents per gallon. Freudenthal unhappy with current candidates CHEYENNE — As a superdelegate to next year’s Democratic National Convention in Denver, Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal would hold one of about 800 potential swing votes. Although he’d be free to back any candidate for his party’s nomination, he says he doesn’t want to go. Freudenthal doesn’t like any of the current crop of presidential candidates, Democrat or Republican. None of them, he said, has addressed important issues facing the West.

Snowmobiles approved for park CODY — Many snowmobile models recently approved for use in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks approach the limits set for noise and carbon monoxide emissions. The National Park Service this week released a list of 41 models less than five years old that will be allowed into the parks. The list is part of a rule permitting in the parks only models that make use of the best available technology to limit noise and pollution. Drainage ditches part of bill draft CASPER — Draft legislation would encourage the digging of drainage ditches to lessen flooding in pastures downstream from coal-bed methane wells. The Joint Minerals, Business and Economic Development Committee signed off on the bill after working on it for two days this week. The bill would enable the state engineer to order the digging of ditches to lessen flooding from coal-bed methane water.

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