Wyoming

Wyoming Part Of Aggressive Effort To Get Cutting-Edge Nuclear Plans Online

Published

2 years ago

March 13, 2024

Wyoming Part Of Aggressive Effort To Get Cutting-Edge Nuclear Plans Online

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic four years ago, the federal government’s Idaho National Laboratory has focused attention on building closer ties with Wyoming and other states on research and deployment of advanced nuclear technologies.

The effort has coalesced around a push that the Department of Energy nuclear lab in Idaho Falls calls the Frontiers Initiative, an effort is designed to help the United States stay competitive with low-emission industrial activity through leading-edge nuclear technology.

To date, Wyoming, Idaho, Alaska and Utah have joined this initiative focused on “nuclear energy first mover states,” said Steven Aumeier, senior adviser to strategic programs with the Idaho National Laboratory.

INL is one of the nation’s national laboratories that performs nuclear energy research for commercial and military applications.

Nearly two years ago, the Wyoming Energy Authority signed a memorandum of understanding agreeing to collaborate on the research, development, demonstration and deployment of nuclear energy technologies.

The initiative is touching all corners of Wyoming.

“There’s a lot of leadership in Wyoming,” Aumeier told Cowboy State Daily. “This train of reduced emissions has left the station. Wall Street is telling industry that they need to reduce emissions if they want capital.”

The Nuclear Solution

Wyoming has its fingers on the pulse of this broader effort focused on nuclear technologies, he said.

“This isn’t just about a reactor or putting electrons on the grid, but this is about Wyoming becoming the first mover in this new paradigm shift,” he said. “Wyoming is pathfinding, and what it does has significant implications for the security of our country.”

Aumeier pointed to several sectors around the state that are helping to define the Frontiers Initiative.

Mike Wandler, CEO of Gillette-based L&H Industrial Inc., has been a huge catalyst for the initiative, Aumeier said.

“He is a real leader who has a global vision,” he said.

In recent months, L&H Industrial Inc. formed a new business unit, Evercore Energy, and appointed Marcio Paes Barreto as managing director to build up a nuclear services business from scratch.

The business model is still under development, but it would be a kind of one-stop shop for everything from consulting services on rolling out a small, modular nuclear reactor to possibly assembling parts.

Barreto was formerly a director of industrial development with the WEA and helped with economic development for the Wyoming Business Council.

In a related matter, Gillette Mayor Shay Lundvall said last month that he wanted to bring a components manufacturer and assembly factory for very tiny nuclear power plants to the coal-rich Powder River Basin.

He said that discussions have begun about bringing a small nuclear plant factory to the city’s still-to-be developed Pronghorn Industrial Park, located next to its sprawling 1,000-acre Cam-plex.

Going Nuclear

“Wyoming needs to think of plugging nuclear into the low emission landscape, which is consistent with what has been pushed by [Gov. Mark Gordon],” said Aumeier, who urged engagement with communities and “honestly answer questions” that arise about safety, economics and job opportunities.

Aumeier also is working with others in Wyoming on the Frontiers Initiative.

These include the University of Wyoming with the hiring of a nuclear subject matter expert; TerraPower, which is building a Natrium reactor demonstration project in southwestern Wyoming in Kemmerer; and BWXT Technologies Inc., which is participating with the WEA to understand the state’s “supply chain” of businesses that could lead to establishment of a nuclear components factory — like the one in Gillette.

The energy starved-trona patch in southwestern Wyoming also is exploring possible opportunities with tiny nuclear reactors, Aumeier said.

Pacific Soda LLC, which said recently that it is looking to develop and build a multibillion-dollar project in Sweetwater County, considered a small nuclear reactor for its power needs but opted to go with a cogeneration power plant near a major natural gas line owned by Williams Cos.

Nonetheless, David Steed, a permitting and regulatory affairs lead for the company, told Cowboy State Daily recently that Pacific Soda is taking a “high level look at nuclear plants” given that its trona operation could have a mining permit for more than 30 years.

Last fall, Tata Chemicals signed an agreement with BWXT Advanced Technologies to study development of small-scale nuclear reactors that will produce up to 100 megawatts of electricity for its trona manufacturing facility and trona mine in Green River.

“From a technology standpoint, you have to look at future sources,” said Genesis Alkali spokesman David Caplan. “You have to look at a variety of technologies in the commodities business to keep costs down, be efficient and produce more volume.”

Caplan declined to comment on whether his trona company is exploring an option of building a small nuclear reactor.

Rocky Mountain Power, the electric utility unit of Oregon-based PacifiCorp, announced in its integrated resource plan last year — a planning document that takes a snapshot look at its future operations — that small, modular nuclear reactors are under consideration.

In addition to the Kemmerer plant, PacifiCorp and TerraPower said they would evaluate the possibility of building up to five additional Natrium reactors in its service territory by 2035.

“One of the defining features of advanced nuclear energy going forward is having a variety of sizes and configurations of reactors that service all types of industry,” Aumeier said.

Even huge power-hungry data centers surrounding F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne could see nuclear powered generators, said Aumeier, who pointed to Microsoft Corp.’s recent venture into next-generation nuclear reactors needed to power its data centers and artificial intelligence ambitions.

“Companies are moving down this road of low-emissions. It’s not driven by federal policy but the reality of doing business,” he said.

Pat Maio can be reached at pat@cowboystatedaily.com.

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Wyoming

Meyer’s Late Score Lifts Wyoming past Air Force – SweetwaterNOW

Published

11 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Meyer’s Late Score Lifts Wyoming past Air Force – SweetwaterNOW

Naz Meyer. Mandatory Credit: Troy Babbitt-UW Media-Athletics

LARAMIE — Nasir Meyer converted a three-point play with 35 seconds remaining to give Wyoming Cowboys men’s basketball the lead for good, and Wyoming held Air Force Falcons men’s basketball scoreless over the final two minutes to secure a 66-62 victory Saturday night.

The win marked the 13th home victory of the season for Wyoming, which improved to 16-13 overall and 7-11 in conference play.

“Air Force deserves all the credit and let’s talk about a team that has every reason not to fight, but thats why they are Air Force and the cadets and I have a lot of respect for them,” Wyoming coach Sundance Wicks said. “They were not going to quit, and I didn’t drive that message home enough and hats off to Air Force because they deserved to win. We snuck away with a win. Adam Harakow showed when we need him and he was massive for us. Simm-Marten was made big plays and Naz was clutch for us late.”

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Wyoming shot 35% from the field and went 7 of 28 from 3-point range, making just two from beyond the arc in the second half. Air Force shot 49% overall and 44% from 3, hitting eight shots from long distance. The Cowboys made 13 of 16 free throws (81%) and scored 22 points off 15 Air Force turnovers while holding a 39-36 edge in rebounding.

Damarion Dennis led Wyoming with 16 points and three assists, going 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. Meyer finished with 14 points and tied a career best with eight rebounds. Adam Harakow added 14 points off the bench on 5-of-6 shooting, his first double-figure scoring game since the first meeting with Air Force. Simm-Marten Saadi had nine points in 13 minutes, and Kiani Saxon grabbed seven rebounds.

Air Force opened with back-to-back 3-pointers to take a 6-0 lead. Meyer scored Wyoming’s first basket, and Leland Walker added a 3-pointer to make it 8-5 with 16 minutes left in the first half.

Wyoming responded with a 9-0 run over nearly four minutes, with Saadi and Harakow each connecting from beyond the arc to give the Cowboys an 11-8 lead with under 14 minutes remaining. Air Force regained a 12-11 advantage as Wyoming went scoreless for more than two minutes.

Harakow’s second 3-pointer pushed the lead to 22-16 with nine minutes left in the half, and Wyoming used a 6-0 run while holding the Falcons without a field goal for more than four minutes to build a 28-18 lead with six minutes remaining. The Cowboys closed the half on a defensive stand, keeping Air Force scoreless for the final two minutes to take a 35-25 lead into the break. Wyoming scored 15 first-half points off turnovers.

The teams traded 3-pointers early in the second half, and Air Force cut the deficit to 40-31 with under 17 minutes left before trimming it to seven 90 seconds later. Walker answered with a 3-pointer to make it 43-33 with 15 minutes to go.

Air Force used a 9-0 run during a stretch in which Wyoming went more than 3 1/2 minutes without a point to pull within one with nine minutes left. The Falcons later tied the game at 51-51 with 5:30 remaining after forcing six straight missed shots.

A pair of free throws by Meyer and a basket from Saadi gave Wyoming a 57-53 lead with under four minutes to play. Air Force answered with three consecutive 3-pointers from Kam Sanders to take a 62-59 lead with two minutes left.

Meyer scored with 90 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to one. On the next trip, he converted an and-one to give Wyoming a 64-62 lead with 35 seconds left. The Cowboys added late free throws to close out the 66-62 win.

Sanders led Air Force with 16 points and nine rebounds, going 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Eli Robinson added 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting.

Wyoming closes its home schedule Tuesday against Nevada Wolf Pack men’s basketball at 8 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the Cowgirls.

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Wyoming

Wyoming High School Basketball 2A State Tournament 2026

Published

23 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Wyoming High School Basketball 2A State Tournament 2026

The 2-time defending champ Tongue River girls, along with both teams from Big Horn will represent Sheridan County in the small school version of March Madness.

Click here to see results from the regional tournaments.

2A Boys:

First Round:

Thursday, March 5th: (All games played at Casper College)

(#2E) Big Horn vs. (#3W) Shoshoni – Noon

(#1W) Thermopolis vs. (#4E) Sundance – 1:30pm

(#2W) Wyoming Indian vs. (#3E) Wright – 6:30pm

(#1E) Pine Bluffs vs. (#4W) Rocky Mountain – 8pm

Friday, March 6th: (All games played at Ford Wyoming Center)

Consolation Round:

Big Horn/Shoshoni loser vs. Thermopolis/Sundance loser – Noon LOSER OUT!

Wyoming Indian/Wright loser vs. Pine Bluffs/Rocky Mountain loser – 1:30pm LOSER OUT!

Semi-Finals:

Big Horn/Shoshoni winner vs. Thermopolis/Sundance winner – 6:30pm

Wyoming Indian/Wright winner vs. Pine Bluffs/Rocky Mountain winner – 8pm

Saturday, March 7th:

Friday Noon winner vs. Friday 1:30pm – Noon at Ford Wyoming Center Consolation Championship

Friday 6:30pm loser vs. Friday 8pm loser – 3pm at Natrona County High School 3rd Place

Friday 6:30pm winner vs. Friday 8pm winner – 7pm at Ford Wyoming Center Championship

2A Girls:

First Round:

Thursday, March 5th: (All games played at Casper College)

(#2W) Wyoming Indian vs. (#3E) Big Horn – 9am

(#1E) Sundance vs. (#4W) Shoshoni – 10:30am

(#2E) Tongue River vs. (#3W) Greybull – 3:30pm

(#1W) Thermopolis vs. (#4E) Pine Bluffs – 5pm

Friday, March 6th: (All games played at Ford Wyoming Center)

Consolation Round:

Wyoming Indian/Big Horn loser vs. Sundance/Shoshoni loser – 9am LOSER OUT!

Tongue River/Greybull loser vs. Thermopolis/Pine Bluffs loser – 10:30am LOSER OUT!

Semi-Finals:

Wyoming Indian/Big Horn winner vs. Sundance/Shoshoni winner – 3:30pm

Tongue River/Greybull loser vs. Thermopolis/Pine Bluffs loser – 5pm

Saturday, March 7th:

Friday 9am winner vs. Friday 10:30am winner – 9am at Ford Wyoming Center Consolation Championship

Friday 3:30pm loser vs. Friday 5pm loser – 10:30am at Ford Wyoming Center 3rd Place

Friday 3:30pm winner vs. Friday 5pm winner – 5:30pm at Ford Wyoming Center Championship

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Wyoming

Wyoming Crow Hunters Can Blast All They Want, But Nobody Eats The Birds

Published

1 day ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Wyoming Crow Hunters Can Blast All They Want, But Nobody Eats The Birds

Mention of bird hunting might conjure up images of hunters and their dogs huddling in freezing duck blinds or pounding the brush in hopes of kicking up pheasants. But crow hunting is a thing in Wyoming too.

“It’s about the sport of it,” Dan Kinneman of Riverton told Cowboy State Daily.

He started crow hunting when he was 14 and is about to turn 85. He’s never tried cooking and eating crows or known anybody who has.

Instead, shooting crows is essentially nuisance bird control, as they’re known to wreak havoc on agricultural crops.

“All the ranchers will let you hunt crows. I’ve never been refused access to hunt crows. They all hate them,” he said.

In Wyoming, crow hunting season runs from Nov. 1 to Feb. 28. No license is required, and there’s no bag limit. Hunters can shoot all the crows they want to.

It’s a ball for hunting dogs too, Kinneman said.

“My yellow Labrador retriever, he doesn’t care whether it’s a crow or duck. In fact, he likes crow hunting more than duck hunting, because there’s more action,” he said.

Crow hunting requires skill, patience and a good set of decoys, an experienced Wyoming hunter said. The upside is, there’s no bag limit, hunters can blast all the crows they want. No one eats them, though.

Don’t Expect It To Be Easy

Kinneman said that in the days of his youth, crow hunting was as simple as driving around and “shooting them out of trees with rifles.”

However, as the number of people and buildings potentially in the paths of bullets grew, such practices fell out of favor. Crow hunting became more regulated.

And it evolved to resemble hunting other birds, such as waterfowl.

Meaning, hunters started setting out decoys, hiding in blinds and using calls to tempt crows to within shotgun range.

Kinneman is no stranger to hunting of all types. He’s taken numerous species of big game in Wyoming and elsewhere. And in July 2005, he shot a prairie dog near Rock Springs from well over a mile away.

He hit the prairie dog from 2,157 yards away. A mile is 1,760 yards.

But bird hunting has always been his favorite.

“It’s my life,” he said.

He has a huge collection of duck, goose and dove decoys. And two tubs full of crow decoys.

The uninitiated might think that going out and blasting crows would be a slam dunk.

That isn’t so, Kinneman said. He likes crow hunting for the challenge of it.

“Hunting crows is hard. They are a lot smarter than ducks and geese,” he said.

Pick Up After Yourself

Even though he doesn’t eat crows, Kinneman said he never just left them littering the ground where he shot them.

“I never let them lay out there. I always picked them up and disposed of the carcasses,” he said.

That’s good ethics and it shows respect for the ranchers, he said.

“Leaving them (dead crows) out there would be no different than just leaving all of your empty shotgun shells out there,” he said.

“You have to pick up after yourself, or the ranchers won’t let you back onto their land,” he added.

Slow Year

At his age, Kinneman isn’t sure how much longer he’ll be able to get out crow hunting. And this year has been a total bust.

“I love doing it. But this year there are no crows,” he said.

The Riverton area is along major crow migration routes.

Picking a good hunting spot is a matter of “finding a flyway” that the crows are on and then setting up a spread of decoys and a blind along the route.

But with an unusually warm winter, the crow flyways have been practically empty, he said.