Will the Great Salt Lake Become a Casualty of The Mega Drought? With impending population growth and the increasing scarcity of water, there is a battle brewing over Utah‘s environment and future. “The Mega Drought” is what some are calling this very dry 2021 water year in Utah and the entire Great Basin area. Lake Powell is at its lowest level since inception and the Great … [Read more...]
CHEMICAL REACTION: How Our Green Lawns are Hurting Us
Once upon a time, every American wanted the same thing: a house in the suburbs with a lush, green lawn surrounded by a white picket fence. It was the American dream. For many, it still is. But are all those green lawns really necessary nowadays, with their excessive water consumption and chemical runoff, and what are the alternatives? After WWII, chemical companies were … [Read more...]
A Brief History of the Great Salt Lake
The Great Salt Lake was born Lake Bonneville ― the massive inland sea that covered the entire area that is now the Salt Lake Valley, Provo/Orem Valley, and well north of Ogden. The sea extended as far North as Idaho and South to Nevada. It was 150 miles from east to west and 250 miles from north to south. Its shores extended high on the east “benches” and its waves lapped … [Read more...]
Proposed Promontory Landfill Hits a Roadblock
Box Elder County documents reveal cozy ties between commissioners and Promontory Point Landfill PROMONTORY POINT — Much has been written about a 2,000-acre landfill situated near the shores of the Great Salt Lake. The controversial waste dump — years in the making — has yet to receive any trash. Licensed since 2004 to handle Class I waste from cities and counties within … [Read more...]
Destruction of Great Salt Lake in the Name of Progress
We are destroying the Great Salt Lake. We are turning this once mighty Great Lake into a cesspool. If “progress” wins, the lake will indeed die. The inland port, which promises to poison the food supply for millions of migratory birds, moves forward. The proposed landfill on the inlet of where the Salt Creek flows into the GSL, where thousands of ducks and … [Read more...]
Could Greater Adoption of Solar Power Save Utah From Dirty Air?
Why aren’t Utah’s political leaders using our budget surplus to expedite our transition? Utah has some of the very worst air quality in the world for the size of our population. In Utah, childhood asthma rates are some of the highest in the U.S. Our abnormally high rates of lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, emphysema are all linked to our particularly high-particulate … [Read more...]
Burn Scars – Restoration Work Continues to Revive Land After Bald Mountain and Pole Creek Fires
March 12, 2020: A year-and-a-half after the Bald Mountain and Pole Creek fires combined to burn over 120,000 acres in southern Utah County, restoration efforts are well underway, but there are still many years of environmental work ahead. In September 2018, the lightning-caused fires forced the evacuations of nearly 6,000 people in Woodland Hills, Elk Ridge, and several … [Read more...]
Inland Port Gets a Makeover: Executive Director Jack Hedge Addresses Major Concerns
The controversial inland port plans to use16,000 acres of land near the bird sanctuaries and wetlands of the Great Salt Lake: Executive Director Jack Hedge answers concerns on the Utah Stories Show. Watch the video: Listen to the podcast: Jack Hedge is a newcomer to Utah, he was imported into Utah and is now the star player of the Inland Port Authority Board. … [Read more...]
Little Cottonwood Canyon is under threat by Utah’s population boom
We need to make the change we want, not allow the change to happen to us.—Carl Fisher Little Cottonwood Canyon in Utah is synonymous with wilderness, natural beauty, remote uncultivated regions still in natural conditions—and recreating. It's been forecasted that by the year 2060, Utah will have an estimated population of 6.84 million. Compare that to today's estimated 3.22 … [Read more...]