Author Archives: chaddd@gmail.com

A Cutthroat Endeavor

Bonneville cutthroat trout will be one beneficiary of designated environmental flows in the Blacksmith Fork and Little Bear Rivers, Cache County, Utah, as a result of a project by BIO-WEST, sponsored by The Nature Conservancy, and in partnership with Trout Unlimited, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Cache County, and Utah State University. Both rivers […]

Raining Donations at the Ashlin Mae Kleven Charity Golf Tournament

When it rains, it pours, and when it pours BIO-WEST goes golfing. Despite very rainy weather that eventually disrupted the event, BIO-WEST participated in the Ashlin Mae Kleven (AMK) Foundation’s 10th Annual Charity Golf Tournament as a team sponsor. BIO-WEST President Darren Olsen also competed in the tournament, which was held September 15, 2015, at […]

BIO-WEST Finds Common Ground in Outdoor Adventure

Since 1998 BIO-WEST has supported Common Ground’s mission to provide life-enhancing outdoor activities for disabled youth and adults; the firm recently donated $10,000 to help build a lodge at the Beaver Mountain Ski Area in Logan Canyon, Utah. Common Ground, founded in 1993 as an AmeriCorps VISTA project, is eliciting community support to build this […]

Golden Eagles Unimpressed by Successful Rocket Test

When Orbital ATK Inc. (ATK) tested the largest solid rocket booster ever built for flight and the most powerful rocket booster in history, BIO-WEST had eyes and ears fixed elsewhere―on the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) population that nests on facility property. To monitor the three resident pairs, BIO-WEST set up in a triangulated position with […]

Photon Harvesting Fuels Electric Vehicle Charging at BIO-WEST Headquarters

All through the winter months, sunshine becomes quite scarce in northern Utah. The sun rides low in the sky and the days are short. In January the sun is often obscured by clouds and overcast conditions, which is why the rooftop solar panels recently installed at BIO-WEST’s corporate headquarters produced only 368 kilowatt-hours during that […]

Turn Up That Geology: Rock and Roll BIO-WEST Style

When a lightning-caused fire destabilized boulders and rocks at Baumgartner Campsite, a popular recreation spot near Featherville, Idaho, and necessitated its closure, the US Forest Service (USFS) contracted BIO-WEST and Western Geologic to mitigate the potential hazards to the campground and its future occupants. Professional Geologists Wes Thompson (BIO-WEST) and Bill Black (Western Geologic) inspected […]

BIO-WEST Employees Volunteer at Fly Fishing Camp

Retired BIO-WEST founder Paul Holden and BIO-WEST employee Chadd VanZanten recently participated as volunteers at a kid’s fly fishing camp. The camp was hosted by local nature conservatory Stokes Nature Center, which is located in Logan Canyon in Cache Vally, Utah. Expertise and educational presentations were provided by Holden, VanZanten, and other members Cache Anglers, […]