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On the Ute Mountain Ute reservation, the tribe has started a project to open one of the largest solar farms in the United States.
Clark Adomaitis has more.
Two-point-two million solar panels, 8 miles long and one mile wide.
That’s the dimensions of the proposed Sun Bear Solar Farm, just south of Towaoc, Colo. in the heart of the Ute Mountain Ute reservation.
Scott Clow, the Ute Mountain Ute Environmental Programs Director, says the solar farm will be one of the top five largest solar farms in the United States.
“It is a commercial scale project on the order of 756 megawatts (of) AC power.”
Planning has been ongoing for two and a half years and funding is coming from international renewable energy company Canigou.
According to Canigou’s Director Justin Passfield, the project will cost over $1 billion.
Passfield says electricity generated from the solar farm will be connected to the Western Area Power Administration line, but it’s unclear what regional entities the electricity will be sold to.
“We’re thinking about the power needs within Colorado, but also it makes sense for not to transmit power too far from where you are. Having said that, we’re going to be producing a large amount of power. So I’m not sure that all of it will be able to be consumed within Colorado.”
Courtesy Canigou Group
Ute Mountain Ute Chairman Manuel Heart is excited about job opportunities for tribal members and the opportunity for the tribe to become a significant player in renewable energy.
“We, as the Ute Mountain Ute tribe, had been a fossil fuel tribe with oil and gas for a long time, probably over 50 years. And today with the changes in legislation, global warming, and climate change, you can see the impact of what’s happening to our world. So renewable is the new future right now.”
Canigou Group says the solar farm will create over 500 local jobs for electricians and laborers, and they’re aiming to start producing electricity in 2026, once final approval is given from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The Bodaway/Gap region of the Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation (TCRHCC) will have its own health care center after 20 years.
TCRHCC will hold a ground-breaking ceremony Friday for a new, two-story health care facility and is expected to be completed in the fall of 2025.
When completed, the center will offer services such as a primary care center, dental clinic, eye clinic, wellness center, mental health clinic, and more.
Residents of Bodaway/Gap have had to travel 35 miles for health care services in Tuba City.
In 2018, TCRHCC established a limited-services, part-time clinic out of a mobile building.
The need for services started in 2002 when a request was made by the communities of Bodaway/Gap and Kaibeto for a health facility.
In a statement, TCRHCC CEO Joette Walters said: “This is a historic event for the surrounding communities, and it all started with a vision to improve access to healthcare.”
Participants in the February 2024 Atkuk Workshop share their creations. (Courtesy Alutiiq Museum)
The Alutiiq Museum in Kodiak, Alaska has released a set of instructions for making an Alutiiq/Sugpiaq snow falling parka.
This project was supported by the Tangirnaq Native Village and the US Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Produced in partnership with Elder Susan Malutin, the resources provided step-by step instructions for creating a long, hoodless coat from fabric.
The garment is styled like the iconic Kodiak Alutiiq snow falling parka worn by men, women, and non-binary people.
The resources are intended to help Alutiiq people create cultural garments to share and celebrate their heritage.
Education Manager Leda Beuthin is leading the project.
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