For Landon Kraczek, the Great Salt Lake brings fond memories.
“I grew up sailing on the Great Salt Lake with my grandma my whole life, until five years ago when we couldn’t put boats in the water anymore,” Kraczek said.
The lake, which hit its lowest-ever recorded levels this past July, presents an ever growing problem for Utah residents. So, below gray skies and rain on the horizon, hundreds of Utahns gathered at the state Capitol on Saturday to demand action from the incoming state legislature.
“She’s not dying on her own,” said Luis Miranda, a climate justice organizer and one of 11 speakers at the protest. “She is dying because of spineless politics [that] we have in Utah.”
Several speakers praised the work already being done to help the lake, including HB33, a state law passed last year that removes the requirement for water-right holders to use all the water allotted to them. Alex Veilleux, policy associate for Healthy Environment Alliance Of Utah, or HEAL Utah, said credit should be given to those who put pressure on lawmakers.
“People power is working,” Veilleux said. “We want to channel the same energy that got over 750 individual, unique comments to deny US Magnesium’s egregious permit to dredge the lake.”
In December, the Utah Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) denied US Magnesium’s request to expand their canals deeper into the Great Salt Lake, saying the “[Division of Water Quality] cannot determine whether water quality will not be further lowered by the proposed activity.”
A recent report from Brigham Young University said efforts ought to be focused on water conservation rather than adding water to the dwindling lake. Darren Parry, former chairman of the Shoshone Nation and a speaker at the protest, said the legislature needs to bring in new voices into the conversation surrounding the lake’s health.
“There is not enough science in the world to overcome selfish behaviors,” Parry said. “As an indigenous leader, we are asking for a seat at the table.”
HEAL Utah has set times for community members who wish to receive lobby training starting Jan. 17, the first day of the 2023 Utah General Session, efforts which will continue throughout the legislative period. Veilleux hopes the energy of the protest encourages more people to get involved.
“We’re going to have to show up in force to get the right ideas passed,” Veilleux said, adding that HEAL Utah plans to organize calls with lawmakers and give testimonies at hearings.
Kraczek said while it may seem like an uphill battle to push lawmakers to take action on the lake, he maintains that the only option is to keep pushing forward.
“There’s no chance of us moving the needle if we don’t show up,” Kraczek said.
More information about the lake can be found through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, a group of news, media and education organizations that have come together to better inform the public about the crisis facing the lake.
