Tag Archives: Great Salt Lake

Water News Roundup – August 2, 2010

2 Aug

Will be at all day training sessions August 3-4.  No water news these days, but back on Thursday.  Thanks for checking in!

Deseret News: State forestry division plans open houses to craft Great Salt Lake Management Plan – With the wind rustling in the cattails and birds bobbing on the water of the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, members of the new Great Salt Lake Advisory Council convened their second meeting — a get-acquainted session on topics related to the unique body of water.

Those meetings are:

Aug. 10, Weber County.

Aug. 17, Salt Lake and Davis counties.

Aug. 24, Tooele County.

Aug. 31, Box Elder County.

More information can be found at www.ffsl.utah.gov/sovlands/gsl.php.

Flash floods set off mudslides and close access to roads in Utah, Duchesne counties – Flash flooding triggered mudslides and closed off access to U.S. 89 near Bird’s Eye Sunday evening but forecasters predict the weather will clear up by Monday.

KSL: Storm floods parts of Utah County – A quick-moving rain storm caused major problems in Utah County Saturday evening.

Salt Lake Tribune: Storms cause flooding in S. Utah – Residents spent Saturday filling sandbags and clearing thick red mud from Kanab streets and basements, caused by floodwaters from torrential rains that swept into town.

Provo Daily Herald: New water restrictions for Pleasant Grove – Residents are using much more water this summer than last year and it is causing a concern about the city’s secondary water supply.

AWRA Blog: Western Governor’s Association DC Workshop: Drought, Climate and Water– The Western Governors’ Association and the Western States Water Council will sponsor a two-day workshop in DC, 14-15 September 2010, on: Drought, Climate and Water: Using Today’s Information and Designing Tomorrow’s Services.

Great Salt Lake News Roundup – July 1, 2010

1 Jul

KCPW: Great Salt Lake Advisory Council begins work – The newly formed Great Salt Lake Advisory Council held its first meeting this morning, bringing together for the first time a permanent advisory body to represent the many disparate groups who have a stake in the lake’s future.

Deseret News: Gov. Gary Herbert wants ‘more holistic’ approach in determining Great Salt Lake’s future – On a typical day, the Great Salt Lake is a smooth mirror, a shimmering, flat calm. The real turbulence is above the surface as people from several walks of life fight for their divergent interests focused on and along the massive pool.

Ogden Standard Examiner: Great Salt Lake council seeks balance – The Great Salt Lake is getting a little more attention these days with its very own advisory council.  Gov. Gary Herbert kicked off the first meeting of the Great Salt Lake Advisory Council on Wednesday at Antelope Island.

Here are the newly appointed members of the GSL council:

Acting chairman: Leland Myers of the Central Davis Sewer District, representing publicly owned treatment works

Jay Hardy, Box Elder County commissioner

Louenda Downs, Davis County commissioner

Jan Zogmaister, Weber County commissioner

Julie Peck-Dabling, Salt Lake County open space manager, representing Salt Lake County

Dan Tuttle, lobbyist, representing Tooele County

Carlton Christensen, Salt Lake City councilman, representing municipal government

Dave Livermore, Utah director of the Nature Conservancy, representing conservation interests

Jeff Richards, president of the Utah Waterfowl Association, representing migratory bird protection areas

Nicol Gagstetter, manager of sustainable development for Kennecott Utah Copper, representing the extractive industry

Don Leonard, representing the brine shrimp industry/aquaculture

Water News Roundup – June 21, 2010

21 Jun

Las Vegas Sun: Supreme Court rules on Las Vegas water applications – It’s back to square one for the Southern Nevada Water Authority in its efforts to pump thousands of acre feet of water from rural Nevada to serve the Las Vegas area.

KSL:

Nevada high court withdraws water right ruling – The Nevada Supreme Court has withdrawn an earlier ruling in a key water rights case, giving new life to a proposal to build a massive pipeline to get water from the northeastern part of the state to Las Vegas.

Chevron says flush of Red Butte Creek appears to be successful – A flush of water rushed down Red Butte Creek in an effort to push any lingering oil residue downstream. Chevron pumped extra water into the creek Saturday afternoon.

Deseret News: Great Salt Lake had its day in Utah – Transport a northern Utahn from a hundred years ago to today, and he’d certainly be shocked by all our technology, as well as our hustle and bustle. He or she would also likely be surprised that many residents have never visited a Great Salt Lake beach or so much as dipped a toe in the briny waters of the lake.

Interesting article on water right pricing and how it is getting more expensive to buy water (via Aguanomics)

Water News Roundup – June 16, 2010

16 Jun

Deseret News: Jordan River access cut off for oil clean up – City officials have shut off public access to the Jordan River from 1700 South to 500 North as a result of cleanup efforts due to Saturday’s oil spill.

Salt Lake Tribune: Oil spotted in Great Salt Lake Wetlands –  Crude oil from the Red Butte Creek pipeline spill appears to have turned up in the Great Salt Lake wetlands.

Salt Lake Tribune – Editorial: Foiled by oil – Oil-soaked birds, a sheen on the water, stream banks painted with petroleum.

KCPW: Environmentalists consider lawsuit against Great Salt Lake Minerals – Several conservation groups are taking preliminary steps toward a lawsuit against the state for issuing a permit to a mineral extraction company that’s operated on Great Salt Lake for the past four decades.

I received this video from a friend of bank-side Red Butte Creek after the recent oil spill.  The contrast of the crude and beautiful 30” rainbow trout struggling and dying makes me incredibly sad.  I know it’s not the Gulf, but it’s our backyard.  I hope Chevron’s clean up is vigorous and is a long-term commitment to restoring the creek, the Jordan River and the Great Salt Lake wetlands affected by the spill.

Water News Roundup – June 14, 2010

14 Jun

Back from vacation and very well rested.  Moab was awesome and St. George even more beautiful than I remember.  So, what’s with all the boil orders of late?  There are so many short articles on boil orders that I’ve left them out of the roundup…  Here’s the rest.  Enjoy!

KSL:

LDS Church protests Snake Valley plan – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has joined hundreds to file a protest with the state of Nevada over a proposal to pump and pipe groundwater from the Snake Valley and surrounding areas to Las Vegas.

Morgan County officials watching Weber River closely – It certainly is a sight to see: an 18-wheeler crossing a small bridge with rushing water high enough to touch the bottom of the bridge.  Morgan County workers, though, say it’s not a problem.

2 dams on ‘Level 1 alert’ due to extremely full reservoirs – Utah’s reservoirs are suddenly bulging with water, and this week officials declared what’s called a Level One Alert for two dams on the Utah-Wyoming border.

Provo Daily Herald: Official: Oil spill hasn’t reach the Great Salt Lake yet – Emergency workers believe they have stopped a 21,000-gallon oil leak from reaching the environmentally sensitive Great Salt Lake, one of the West’s most important inland water bodies for migratory birds that use it as a place to rest, eat and breed.

Deseret News:

Mussel causes restrictions at Sand Hollow Reservoir – In an emergency action taken Thursday, the state wildlife board extended its lasso of boater-related restrictions over Sand Hollow Reservoir in order to control the infestation of invasive mussels.

Mormon church among protesters of Las Vegas water plan – Opponents of a controversial pipeline that would tap water from a shared Nevada/Utah aquifer and convey it to Las Vegas say more than 2,300 protests have been filed against the plan, including objections mounted by the Mormon church.

Rep. Jim Matheson and Mayor Ralph Becker testify in D.C. to expand watershed protection – While clean drinking water became a priority this week for Oakley and Lindon residents as they boiled water contaminated by floods, it’s always on the mind of Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah

Salt Lake Tribune:

Lake Powell Pipeline to water Las Vegas? – Second Congressional District challenger Claudia Wright this week raised the specter of a Las Vegas water grab via Utah’s own proposed Lake Powell pipeline, a puzzling possibility that she said residents of Utah’s Dixie have warned her about.

Lake is the only source of sulfate of potash – Lately there has been a lot of discussion about Great Salt Lake Minerals’ plans to expand our solar evaporation ponds in order to produce more sulfate of potash (SOP), an all-natural crop nutrient. But there is confusion about what SOP is, as well as what the expansion would provide.

Oil shale and the future“The task is great. So is the need. And there is no time to lose.” – Exxon’s 1980 “White Paper”

Those stirring words concluded a 10-page document released in the early summer 30 years ago outlining Exxon’s grand plan to help solve the nation’s energy crisis of the 1970s.

SLC residents angry, sad over oil-fouled yards and waterways – [Resident’s] backyard serenity was destroyed this weekend when an underground Chevron pipeline ruptured just south of Red Butte Gardens, near the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, and leaked an estimated 21,000 gallons of oil into Red Butte Creek, that flowed to Liberty Park pond and the Jordan River.

Containment the goal of initial oil spill cleanup – Chevron is expected to unveil a cleanup plan this morning, after a day in which the company focused on containing an oil leak that fouled Red Butte Creek and Liberty Park pond, in hopes of keeping the toxic spill from reaching the Great Salt Lake.

KCPW: Becker says city investigation of oil spill underway – Now, the hope is that oil won’t reach the Great Salt Lake.  What’s being done to prevent that from happening, and who will hold Chevron’s feet to the fire to make sure the cleanup is fully completed and paid for?  KCPW’s Jeff Robinson spoke with Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker.

Water News Roundup – June 1, 2010

1 Jun

KSL: Water use down considerably in Salt Lake City – Millions of gallons of water, hundreds of thousands of dollars.  That’s how much Salt Lake International Airport has saved by switching out thirsty lawns for water-wise landscaping.

Since urging conservation, water use is down considerably in Salt Lake City.

Las Vegas Sun: Water authority eye power for pipeline planSouthern Nevada Water Authority is on the verge of getting into the geothermal power business.

Provo Daily Herald: Saratoga leaders consider imposing fines for cross connections – Saratoga Springs leaders are talking about putting teeth into a city code on cross connecting culinary drinking water with irrigation lines after a bacteria outbreak.

Deseret News – Editorial: Utah’s water is precious – May 24 had a record-breaking snowfall. And we don’t dare complain.

Salt Lake Tribune – Editorial:

Whoever thought this bathtub was a good idea? – A dozen miles from Lake Powell, up the Dirty Devil River, our canoes enter the old lake-bottom layer.

Great Salt Lake belongs to all of us – I was perplexed after reading Corey Milne’s op-ed (“A new approach to the Great Salt Lake,” Opinion, May 15).

Water News Roundup – May 17, 2010

17 May

Happy Monday!  Loads of water news today.  When it rains it pours?

Provo Daily HeraldTask force formed to discuss water access on private lands – There have been few issues in the past five years hotter than recreational access to water flowing over private property.

Provo Daily Herald – OpinionFacts support need for Utah Lake bridge – In the last few weeks there have been two news articles that state the bridge across Utah Lake is "a bad idea" and it is "not viable." People can have thoughts and beliefs, but not their own facts.

Salt Lake Tribune:

A new approach to the Great Salt Lake – Great Salt Lake Minerals Corp.’s expansion plan is moving forward so America’s farmers can continue to feed our country and help meet growing worldwide food needs.

Wyoming worried about Green River water grab – Wyoming has an unusual problem among the states in the Colorado River system: lots of water and, other than supporting some fine trout fishing, no way to put a significant amount of it to use.

Deseret NewsComments sought on Gooseberry Narrows dam project – Envisioned 77 years ago as a way to supply water to northern Sanpete County residents, the proposed Gooseberry Narrows reservoir remains on the drawing board and a subject of bitter contention between two counties.

St. George Spectrum: Event highlights water education – A wet winter has water supplies looking good in Southern Utah, but water managers are reminding residents to do what they can to help those supplies last.

KCPW: Salt Lake County adopts stricter drinking water protections – Salt Lake County adopted a water source protection ordinance this week to beef up protections already in place and to comply with a new state law.

Water News Roundup – May 13, 2010

13 May

Sorry for the delay – working from home today with a very sick kiddo. 😦

High Country News: It takes a district – Escalante Valley citizens plan to save their declining aquifer – Standing in a circle of verdant alfalfa shoots, Cody Staheli peers from under his Staheli Farms ball cap, looking beyond the irrigation lines to the snow-packed mountains framing southern Utah’s Escalante Valley. This year’s snowmelt is expected to be higher than average. “I try not to cuss at the mud,” Staheli says. (This article requires a registration for a free trial period – hopefully you are already subscribing to HCN.  If not, this is a great chance to give it a try for 30 days.)

Deseret News: Great Salt Lake Bird Festival starts Thursday – Birders from all over Utah are converging on Farmington this weekend for the 12th annual Great Salt Lake Bird Festival.  The festival runs through Monday, and some bird-watching field trips are still available. To book a field trip, call 801-451-3286.

Salt Lake Tribune: Water pipeline going in along 3200 West – The Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District, the agency that provides most of the drinking water for the communities in the Salt Lake Valley, has launched a major pipeline expansion that will begin in Taylorsville and run through West Jordan and South Jordan.


AWRA and News Roundup – May 11, 2010

11 May

Attending the AWRA – Utah Section Conference today.  Plenty of talks and more information than one could possibly digest in one day, as usual.  Notable talks so far include water quality of the GSL and Jordan River, updates on water infrastructure funding and an overview of recently adopted water legislation (water banking, aquifer storage and recovery, etc.).  Hilarious vignettes from a surprisingly frank Representative Patrick Painter.  My faves so far: Jay Franson and Representative Painter.  This year the venue is the University of Utah’s Rice-Eccles Stadium tower overlooking the Salt Lake Valley.  Quite a view of the ongoing rainstorm… hey, at least it’s not snowing.

Later:  Oooo!  I got to meet Michael the Aquadoc Campana from Waterwired!  (As a noob water nerd, I must geek out about this.)  He provides a great summary of the talks on his blog.  I’m glad that he was able to speak and that he enjoyed the rest of the presentations.

“Some of you are no doubt thinking, “Oh, no! WaterWired got stuck at Delta’s SLC hub waiting for a connection!” That has happened to me more than once, but not this time. My 28 hours in SLC were a WaterWonk’s delight…”

Ogden Standard Examiner: Farmington water rates could go up 40% – Water rates will rise by at least 40 percent in the coming year as part of a new rate structure being finalized by city officials in conjunction with Lagoon.  In a recent council work session, Mayor Scott Harbertson set 40 percent as the baseline for an anticipated water rate hike for the 2010-11 fiscal year, which begins July 1.

Salt Lake Tribune – Editorial: Catastrophic Plan – The Salt Lake City Council will soon vote to either approve the proposed Northwest Quadrant Master Plan or uphold current zoning that preserves heritage farms and natural wetlands around the Great Salt Lake (“Plan sees mini-city west of airport,” Tribune , April 19). If developed as currently proposed, the results will be catastrophic.

Water News Roundup – May 10, 2010

10 May

St. George Spectrum: Utah allows rainwater collection – During its 2010 session, the Utah Legislature approved Senate Bill 32. The mandate allows rainwater collection and storage in no more than one underground 2,500 gallon container or no more than two above-ground containers of 100 gallons each.

Salt Lake Tribune: Outdoor Notebook: Migrate on over to the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival – The 12th annual Great Salt Lake Bird Festival is May 13-17 with field trips, workshops, lectures and educational and craft booths. The Davis County Legacy Events Center, 151 S. 1100 West, Farmington, is the main location for the event with hours from noon to 7 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. Bill Fenimore, author of Backyard Birds of Utah and The Salt Lake Tribune ‘s Bird Sighting feature, will be the keynote speaker at a dinner May 15 at 6 p.m. Visit greatsaltlakebirdfest.com or call 801-451-3286 for information.

Water News Roundup – May 5, 2010

5 May

Ogden Standard Examiner: Exploring our feathered friends – The state’s premier bird festival might be organized by Davis County, but it reaches well beyond the county borders to explore and celebrate the diverse wild bird populations throughout the Great Salt Lake ecosystem and Northern Utah in general.

KSL: Salt Lake City residents could see water rate increase – Currently, the city is refurbishing an old sewer main dating from the 1960s. Almost $4 million is needed for projects like this one.

Water News Roundup – May 4, 2010

4 May

Deseret News: More than 1,600 file protests over plan to tap Snake Valley aquifer – The protests are piling up over a plan that proposes to tap water from an aquifer in Snake Valley that straddles the border of Utah and Nevada.

St. George Spectrum: Water week educates residents – Water managers across Utah kicked off a series of tours, educational events and other activities Monday as part of Water Week, a statewide effort to promote water conservation and educate about how people use water.

Salt Lake Tribune – Editorial: Shrinking lake – The Great Salt Lake is shrinking, taking vital wetlands with it. While the lake level historically rises and falls dramatically, warming temperatures and dwindling snowpack could mean a permanently smaller lake. If that happens, millions of birds and other wildlife could lose vital food, shelter and nesting areas.

Water New Roundup – May 3, 2010

3 May

Deseret News:

Bear Lake the ‘Caribbean of the Rockies’ – Bear Lake and Bear River share a name — but for 10,000 years, their waters did not mingle. Earthquake activity had shifted the course of the river that horseshoes around the lake, cutting off the lake.

Plan for Jordan River rehabilitation moves forward – The Salt Lake County Council became the first government entity to sign off on an ambitious plan to rehabilitate the Jordan River, preserve and acquire neighboring open space and develop a “lake-to-lake” trail along its 50-mile corridor.

Salt Lake TribuneGroups say Great Salt Lake needs help staying wet – The idea of a Great Salt Lake with too little water might seem hard to fathom.  But some of the iconic lake’s biggest fans spent three days this week discussing signs it might be water-starved already and what the fallout might be if it shrinks more.

Salt Lake Tribune – EditorialRiver revival – A plan to reinvigorate the Jordan River is gaining momentum.  A coalition of river advocates called the Blueprint Jordan River Implementation Committee has put together an intergovernmental agreement that would bring together 15 cities and three counties to revive the Jordan.

Ogden Standard Examiner: Officials, advocates debate Great Salt Lake management – A massive dust storm Tuesday turned Top of Utah gray, raised particulate pollution and served as a coincidental introduction for this year’s Great Salt Lake Issues Forum.

KSL:

Groups float Great Salt Lake water right idea – Some of the biggest fans of the Great Salt Lake are floating a new idea in response to concern the lake is starved for water and could shrink even more.  Giving the lake its own water share, through a dedicated water right or conservation pool, was one of the proposals discussed at the Friends of Great Salt Lake forum this week.

State and city leaders kick off Water Week! – Leaders, residents and businesses across the state are gearing up to raise awareness of the importance of water conservation in Utah.

The St. George Spectrum: St. George starts Water Week 2010 – Water Week kicks off Saturday and the theme for 2010 is “Water Works.”  St. George and the Washington County Water Conservancy District have teamed up to provide several events and tours to celebrate the week and showcase some of the water works. All the events are free.

Water News Roundup – April 28, 2010

28 Apr

Current conditions:  SNOWING!!! Rrrrrr!

Salt Lake Tribune: Professor says law supports Great Salt Lake water allocation – Great Salt Lake needs a water allocation.  That will be the message presented at the 2010 Great Salt Lake Issues Forum today through Friday at the University of Utah, featuring several experts speaking at the Ft. Douglas Officer’s Club.

Deseret News: Construction underway for water conservation center – The district broke ground Tuesday on the WaterSmart Education Center — a $3.5 million, 9,400-square-foot building at the entrance of the Conservation Garden Park, 8215 S. 1300 West. The multi-use facility will act as home base for horticulturists, with classrooms, exhibits and a greenhouse.

Las Vegas Sun: Gov. waiting to see if state Supreme Court reconsiders ruling on water rights – Gov. Jim Gibbons is going to wait before deciding what action to take to see if the Nevada Supreme Court reconsiders a ruling involving pumping 40,000 acre feet of water from eastern Nevada to Las Vegas.

Water News Roundup – March 31, 2010

31 Mar

Ogden Standard Examiner: Court dismisses against Great Salt Lake Minerals – Utah’s Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit filed against the Department of Natural Resources on Tuesday over plans by Great Salt Lake Minerals to expand its evaporation ponds in Great Salt Lake.  The dismissal means Great Salt Lake Minerals, based in Weber County, has one less barrier in its efforts to expand the ponds.

A collection of new ‘Smart’ design in water tech… if you’ve heard of some other recent water-related tech innovation, post a comment (see link above)!

New York Times: Smart Water Meters Take Hold in California – Smart water meters are taking off in California, according to a forthcoming report from the California Energy Commission.

Water and Wastewater Blog: Could Bloom Box turn wastewater treatment plants into power generation stations? – Bloom Energy Corp. generated lots of high-energy buzz for its fuel cell “energy servers” on “60 Minutes” last month…

Water Online: GE Smart Grid technology enabling customers in Germany to track energy and water consumption – Stadtwerke Erding, the city’s public works department, is implementing a groundbreaking pilot installation that will consolidate and report data to homeowners on energy and utility usage, including electricity, gas, water and heating.