Utah Lake

Utah Lake is one of the largest and most productive freshwater lakes in the western U.S. This keystone ecosystem is the centerpiece of our community, providing critical habitat, abundant recreational opportunities, and invaluable ecosystem services such as removing pollution and creating local precipitation. In this time of dramatic change, we need evidence-based management and legislation to protect and restore this unique, beautiful, and dynamic lake. https://pws.byu.edu/utah-lake

 

We Have the Power to Impact

Our Future, and We’re Doing

Something About It

 

A coalition of Utah conservation groups, led by Conserve Utah Valley, has joined forces stop the development of Utah Lake.  You can take two important actions today to support the movement:

  1. Sign the petition
  2. Write your Utah State legislator

 

Photo by Jared Tamez

IG: @jaredtamezphotography

Events

Rep. Keven Stratton and CUV held the Utah Lake Summit, on Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022. This discussion covered the current Lake restoration efforts and progress, as well as what needs to be done to increase responsible, science-based restoration of the Lake for future generations.

Watch the recording for this event below

Updates

Stay up to date with our current progress

Utah Lake Commission vs Utah Lake Authority

If you’ve been following the Utah Lake drama then you’ve probably heard of the Utah Lake Authority and the Utah Lake Commission but might be wondering, what’s the difference? The Utah Lake Commission recently published a podcast episode on a few differences between...

Update on CUV meeting with all ULA members

Upon the establishment of the Utah Lake Authority (ULA), Conserve Utah Valley members met with all ULA board members to introduce CUV, offer assistance with initiatives, and call for transparency and public involvement. We met with ULA members and learned about them...

Press Release: Utah Lake Island Proposal Lacks Scientific Evidence and Deemed Unconstitutional in State Report to Legislative Committee

NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Provo, UtahThursday, August 18, 2022 Contacts: Craig Christensen, Executive Director for CUV 801-361-6200 Patrick Belmont Professor and Head of Department of Watershed Sciences at USU 435-374-8574 Carol-Lyn Jardine, Marketing...

Overwhelming public response shows people do not want islands on Utah Lake

Background: Lake Restoration Solutions, the company proposing the world’s largest dredged island project on Utah Lake, recently released the results of a poll that found 2/3rds of Utah County residents supported their project. As a group of citizens who have been...

New Study on Utah Lake

One of the biggest misconceptions about Utah Lake is that it's getting worse. Check out this new study by BYU master's student Kaylee Tanner. Using NASA's Landsat data, she and her team reconstructed 40 years of algal activity on the lake.  They found that blooms have...

Lake Restoration Solutions Serves Subpoena to Conserve Utah Valley

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 3, 2022   Lake Restoration Solutions Serves Subpoena to Conserve Utah Valley   Conserve Utah Valley was served a subpoena in the SLAPP lawsuit filed against Ben Abbott PhD, a researcher on Utah Lake water quality and advocate for...

Utah Lake Summit Questions

At the Utah Lake Summit a couple of weeks ago, attendees were able to ask questions to the presenters online. Because of time constraints, most of the questions remained unanswered. However, since then we have been reaching out to the presenters to obtain answers to...

Utah Lake Summit II Recap

The last Utah Lake Summit was a huge success! We are so grateful for everyone who attended and especially for those who presented. We learned a lot about the current conditions of Utah Lake and how we are on a great track for recovery. I was inspired as I learned...

Smith Family Archaeological Preserve Tour

I got to go tour the Smith Family Archaeological Preserve on Saturday and had a great experience. The preserve was created in 2013 when the Smiths deeded nearly 200 acres of land to the Archaeological Conservancy. This protects the land from being sold or developed.  ...

Please Continue to Share the Don’t Pave Utah Lake Petition!

Hello all! It’s been an interesting winter! We are grateful that Rep. Keven Stratton sponsored and worked diligently to get H.B. 240 passed in the legislative session. This bill amends H.B. 272 from 2018. There was constant monitoring, meeting with policy makers, listening, additional changes and waiting (so much waiting!) as we watched it move through the process. We are grateful we were heard and that much needed transparency and tighter guidelines are now in place.

Repeal HB272 or lose the Lake

Despite its environmental, cultural, and economic importance, our lake is in grave danger because of a law passed in 2018. The “Utah Lake Amendments” (H.B. 272) created a loophole that allowed the lakebed to be given to commercial developers. Right now, an LLC called “Lake Restoration Solutions” is preparing to build 20,000 acres of dredged islands and house up to 500,000 people on them. The state legislature gave this company a $10 million loan guarantee in 2021 to subsidize their fundraising and permitting efforts (coverage here).

State resources and taxpayer dollars should not be used to subsidize a real estate venture that claims to have billions lined up from foreign investors. H.B. 240 was passed in the 2022 legislative session which provides needed guardrails and requires more steps for transparency. Yet, working to repeal H.B. 272 in the future will restore Utah Lake’s constitutional protection, ensuring Utah Lake is held in “public trust” in perpetuity for all Utahns, present and future. 

Many healthy restoration efforts have been taking place over the past decades and are bringing the lake back to a natural healthy state. Efforts like the Walkara Way project, removal of carp and phragmites, the Provo River Delta Restoration Project and the Hobble Creek Restoration Project are helping the lake heal. 

We call on Utahns from all political backgrounds to stand together to oppose this waste of taxpayer dollars that threatens our valley. Repealing H.B. 272 in a future legislative session will ensure that Utah Lake is managed responsibly for the people of Utah.



8 Reasons to sign the petition

1.

Gifting 20,000 acres of lakebed to a private developer would be the biggest government giveaway in Utah history.

2.

Despite false claims by the developers, Utah Lake is on the road to recovery thanks to hundreds of science-based restoration projects undertaken over the past 30 years. 

3.

The proposed project is 370-times larger than the largest freshwater dredging project ever completed and is almost certain to fail, leaving a huge environmental mess for Utah taxpayers to clean up.

4.

Utah Lake provides recreational opportunities, pollution removal, and increasing local precipitation, which contributes to our world-class skiing.

5.

Humans inhabiting islands in the lake would increase the levels of pollution that run into the lake.

6.

Thirty-five million migratory birds and ten million fish call Utah Lake home. Destroying this lake would disrupt wildlife throughout Utah and the western U.S.

7.

These islands would permanently deface our valley, destroying the view of the lake and compromising the natural hydrology and biology that make this lake so resilient.

8.

Dredging and building islands would alter the structure and chemistry of the lake, allowing increased light penetration which would actually increase algae growth.

Sign the Petition Today

Utah Lake Conservation Coalition

Utah Valley Earth Forum
Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment
Utah State University Department of Watershed Sciences
Utah Lake Symposium
GSLAudubon
Utah Native Plant Society
Timpanogos Nation
Mormon Environmental Stewardship Alliance
Friends of Great Salt Lake
Utah Valley Mutual Aid
Utah Audubon Council
Westwater
Utah Rivers Council
Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance
Sierra Club Utah Chapter
Citizens' Climate Lobby - Utah Valley Chapter