Noel decided to sponsor the resolution after hearings in Kanab, in which 75 or 100 residents were pretty adamant against testing, he said. "I haven't run into anybody that wants to see any nuclear testing at the Nevada Test Site."

In a different arena of the environmental jousts, Noel is sponsoring a bill, not yet assigned a number, that would require federal land managers to consider state plans, laws and regulations when promulgating their own land management plans.

Respecting road rights of way and allowing access to water diversion points, communication towers and mineral resources are issues that the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service and other federal agencies should have to comply with, he said.

"There's some tremendous finds in Uintah County for methane gas, also in Sevier County for oil. They think they've found a brand new supply there," said Noel.

Federal land management plans are key to whether Utahns have access to such things, he said. The problem, as he sees it, is that the federal government has been greatly increasing its Areas of Critical Environmental Concern, where certain activities may be hampered or banned.

Years ago, he said, ACECs were relative small. "Now we're finding in some areas there's more than a million acres of proposed ACECs." His bill would require the government to respect the state's legal interest in such cases.

Noel added, "I think Gov. Huntsman has indicated he is going to be very proactive in protecting state rights.

An oversight committee that no longer exists, the Federal Research Committee, would be revived under a bill sponsored by Sen. Gene Davis, D-Salt Lake City. SB85 would set up a 13-member team to keep tabs on actions of federal installations and programs in Utah.

Davis said the original Federal Research Committee began during the administration of former Gov. Scott Matheson but languished and died when former Gov. Mike Leavitt was in office.

The committee would make sure state agencies know what is going on in federal installations and serve as a liaison with the national government agencies. A particular aim, said Davis, is the expansion proposed for Dugway Proving Ground.

Not only are operations to be beefed up at the western Utah base, he said, but Dugway has been seeking to expand physically. Although proposals are circulating, "I found out the state didn't even know" about many of these matters first-hand.

Pathogens are tested at Dugway and the huge base may seek to acquire new property, he said. "I became concerned that there are new laboratories being built, that we helped pay for the expansion of a runway at Dugway," he said.

When details are sought through the Freedom of Information Act, he said, "it's not forthcoming."