Tuesday, Aug. 11

From Boise State Public Radio, this is The Connector, Idaho Daily News. Good morning. I'm Lauren Patterson. It's Tuesday, August 11th. Today we have news on the Interior Department reviewing federal wilderness policies across millions of acres of public lands, a call for ornaments for the capital Christmas tree, and updates to the Discovery Center of Idaho. The hottest topic on social media in Boise, apart from the weather, is on the crackdown on electric motorcycles. George Prennis has more on the popular mode of transportation. Earlier this summer, the Boise City Council enacted what they called an emergency ordinance, defining what e-motos are. and then requiring them to follow the same rules as motorcycles. You can think of insurance, making sure that you have a driver's license, making sure that you have a motorcycle endorsement, and really trying to clear up any confusion of, is this an e-bike? Is this not an e-bike? That's Boise Councilman Jimmy Halliburton. E-bikes have a less powerful motor, whereas e-motos can go up to 40 miles per hour. or more. By code, it's defined as a motorcycle and therefore has to follow some of those same rules. Boise Mayor Lauren McLean said the ordinance was the result of an outcry from parents because emotos are being marketed to kids but are just as powerful as motorcycles. In my own neighborhood, you see them out there going really fast and they're doing wheelies and everything else. They don't have a driver's license. And that just is not okay now that we're clearly defining that these are motorcycles and not e-bikes that can go. super high speeds with a whole bunch of wattage. The city has also launched a micromobility task force with representatives from the school district, Boise Police, and youth and parent representatives. George Prentice, Boise State Public Radio News. The Boise Council gets an update on e-mobility devices later today. The council's workshop session gets underway at 4 this afternoon, Mountain Time. The Interior Department is reviewing federal wilderness policies across millions of acres of public lands, saying it could expand recreation access. As the Mountain West News Bureau's Rachel Cohen reports, conservation groups have concerns. The policies oversee designated wilderness, some of the most protected public lands, where motorized vehicles and equipment are generally banned. They also cover wilderness study areas, places that could one day receive wilderness designation from Congress. Michael Carroll is with the advocacy group, the Wilderness Society. He says the review is broad and could change how these lands are managed. Our deep concern is that they're going to basically change those regulations to allow more development, more road building, more access to these wild places. But some recreation groups say lands without an official wilderness designation are just locked up while awaiting Congress. They want more... access for things like off-road vehicles. For the Mountain West News Bureau, I'm Rachel Cohen. The Interior Department is accepting public comments on wilderness policies at the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service through this Friday.

The People's Tree, the towering evergreen that stands in Capitol Square to represent the people of the United States, will be harvested from northern Idaho this year. But the U.S. Forest Service needs thousands of handmade ornaments to decorate it. Katie Bauer, a recreation management specialist for the Nesperse Clearwater National Forests, has been unboxing some of the latest designs. Things are coming in every day. It's so fun to see all the creative ornaments that people are sending us. We've seen yarn, fabric, stain class. The goal, she says, is to get 10,000 ornaments to send with the tree. So far, they have about 2,500. She's encouraging everyone to get creative, make some shiny holiday ornaments, and send them in to the U.S. Forest Service office in Kamiye. Learn more about the project at uscapitalchristree.com. From Dragons to Dinosaurs, the Discovery Center of Idaho is the state's one-stop shop for all things science, and it recently made some changes. Chantelle Ramirez Sanchez has more. Every year, thousands of Idaho youth visit the center for everything, from annual field trips to science camps. We did just update our young learners area, and that has all new exhibits in it, and it's a new space. That's Eric Miller, the executive director of the Discovery Center of Idaho. He says the center made changes to the interior and exterior. All spaces, public spaces within the institution are now accessible with ramps for all-wheeled access. The H-FAC system was replaced, and taller ceilings create more opportunities for new exhibits and programming. We are looking at doing a regular, maybe once a year event that is all STEM activities outside the building because we have a new plaza area. He says the center is using AI for education and content development purposes, including translation needs. We use it a lot for our designs of exhibits and exhibitions right now. The center plans to debut an animated dragon exhibition in November. Chantara Mida Sanchez, Boise State Public Radio News. And that's today's episode of The Connector. I'm Lauren Patterson. Are you subscribed to this podcast yet? Make sure you're following so you never miss an episode. Have a lovely Tuesday.

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