Ogden, UTAH – According to the state officials, the suspension allows for existing water rights and applications to be used and developed while promoting more efficient use of the existing supply.
Officials also said that the suspension pauses further appropriations of surface water and groundwater that are tributary to Great Salt Lake. It also provides an opportunity for some of the conservation measures proposed during the 2022 legislative session to be implemented while allowing time for additional research to be completed.
A declining Great Salt Lake has far-reaching consequences and could result in increased dust, worsening air quality, reduced snow, diminished lake access, increased salinity, habitat loss and negative economic repercussions to the state.
Although the proclamation suspends new appropriations of water throughout the Great Salt Lake Basin, there are exceptions for applications that propose nonconsumptive uses, applications that include a mitigation plan to offset depletion, and applications for small amounts of water associated with individual domestic uses. It also excludes areas of Tooele County and the West Desert outside the surveyed meander line of Great Salt Lake.
Lake elevation is starting to stabilize now that temperatures are dropping, storms are moving in and irrigation has concluded for the season. Levels are expected to rise slowly and peak with spring runoff. According to the United States Geological Survey causeway gauge, lake elevation has fluctuated between 4188.9 and 4188.6 over the last month.