Monday evening, Dec. 27, 2021
Northern Utah
Airport delays
Salt Lake City International Airport continues to see a good amount of delays and cancellations. According to the tracking website Flight Aware, as of 5:45 p.m. there were 56 cancellations and 271 delays Monday. That is down from Sunday’s total of 73 cancellations and 450 delays. But Salt Lake was still ranked on FlightAware's "Misery Map,” which means it was seeing some of the worst travel disruptions in the country. The regional carrier SkyWest airlines made up the majority of cancellations and delays, followed by Delta. — Caroline Ballard
COVID-19 update from the holiday weekend
Utah Department of Health officials reported 4,607 new COVID-19 cases on Monday. That’s a four-day total dating back to Thursday. Nearly 1 in 8 of those cases were among school age children. The seven-day average of cases has increased over the past week. It now stands at 1,158 cases a day. Officials also said another 16 Utahns have died from the virus. Those included two women and a man between the ages of 25 and 44. They lived in Salt Lake, Utah and Washington Counties. — Elaine Clark
USU basketball home opener postponed
The Utah State men’s basketball team will not play its first home game Saturday as scheduled. The Aggies were set to face off against San Jose State. However, San Jose State had to pull out of its first three games of the season after players tested positive for COVID-19. The game will be postponed, and if it can’t be rescheduled, it will be declared a no contest. USU’s season opener at Air Force is still on for Wednesday, Dec. 29. — Caroline Ballard
State
Winter storm headed to Utah
Another band of winter weather is moving in on Monday night. Cold temperatures and 1-3 inches of snow are expected in the Salt Lake Valley. By Tuesday, snow is in the forecast throughout Southern Utah. In the mountains, there could be very unstable snowpacks and high avalanche risk. People should check those warnings before heading out. — Caroline Ballard
Legislature looks to CO2 capture to address climate change
The Utah Legislature will soon consider a resolution about climate change. Environmentalists say it’s a step in the right direction but misses the mark. The resolution acknowledges climate change, saying the best way to address it is carbon sequestration, or capturing and storing CO2 in forests. Lawmakers say instead of focusing on renewable energy in his climate agenda, — President Joe Biden should look to public lands. Deeda Seed, with the Center for Biological Diversity, said it’s promising to hear lawmakers talk openly about climate change, but she said their focus is an excuse to continue with business as usual. Read the full story. — Lexi Peery
Region/Nation
Necessity is the mother of water management
A new paper from two leading Western water experts explores the future of managing a shrinking supply from the Colorado River. Anne Castle with the University of Colorado Law School co-authored the paper. She said the best policies have come when dry conditions make things more urgent. The threat of federal intervention also helps push states to expedite new water management policies. Water managers in the river basin are bracing for cutbacks and more drought heading into 2022. — Alex Hager, KUNC