Utah Lake dredging put on hold
“Permitting for the massive dredging project proposed for Utah Lake has been suspended while the company behind the plan seeks to compile additional materials to support the controversial application to create 18,000 acres of islands, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” the Salt Lake Tribune reported last week.
We knew this was a bad idea the moment we heard about ‘Lake Restoration Solutions’ plans. Ecological effects of dredging and building artificial islands aside, cramming another city of people into the Wasatch Front with ongoing drought, dust and pollution challenges is irresponsible and reckless.
An Army Corps permit specialist told the Tribune that the company has not given them all of the required documents to complete their application. To carry out their plan, they need to prove that it won’t have poor impacts to the lake, something that scientists are certain it will.
The proposal has been riddled with controversy. The company made an early attempt to silence critics, slapping a defamation lawsuit on a BYU professor who pointed out concerns with the science behind their claims. They’ve also faced backlash against transparency issues with funding, and potentially causing water rights conflicts.
Lake Restoration Solutions has said that to help pay for this project, they will dedicate some of the islands to real estate development. The Utah Department of Natural Resources told a legislature interim committee that the Attorney General’s office considers this part of the proposal unconstitutional.
Strong public opposition, and amplifying the science behind lake restoration has been crucial in this battle. Please continue to speak out against this idea until it is dead.
