Several conservation groups heavily criticized Utah's new plan to save the Great Salt Lake as "inadequate" as the lake's water levels continue to fall.
Great Salt Lake water levels have been a concern since they hit a new record low in November 2022, according to the Great Salt Lake strategic plan that released on Monday. As of Thursday, the lake's water levels were at 4,189.66 feet. Dropping water levels spike the lake's salinity, and environmental leaders hope to restore the lake to 4,198 feet to preserve the ecosystem and a brine shrimp industry that feeds millions.
Lawmakers have since conspired to establish the Office of the Great Salt Lake Commissioner to prepare a strategic plan for restoring the lake; Brian Steed was appointed to the position in May 2023.
However, Steed's newly published plan didn't land well with several conservation groups in the area.
Environmental law organization Earthjustice called the plan "inadequate" and claimed that "the plan does not impose any binding measures to avert the unfolding crisis" at the lake.
Steed addressed a three-pronged approach to the crisis in the plan: a short-term approach, a medium-term approach and a long-term approach. The methods spanned 30 years. In a press release, Steed said that restoring the lake to a healthy range is "not a one-year, one-policy, one-constituency solution."
He also acknowledged that "striking the right balance" for the Great Salt Lake's recovery is "no small task."
"We are focused on implementing the plan to get the lake back to a healthy range and sustain it," Steed told Newsweek in a statement. "There is no simple silver bullet. It will take all of us working together to protect and sustain the lake."
Earthjustice is representing Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment, American Bird Conservancy, Center for Biological Diversity, Sierra Club and Utah Rivers Council in a lawsuit filed against the state of Utah last September. The lawsuit accuses the state of failing to take appropriate and necessary action to address the crisis and protect the lake.
Earthjustice is currently working on its response to the state's motions to dismiss the lawsuit.
"This plan only cloaks Utah's true intentions to continue turning a blind eye to the crisis the state created at the Great Salt Lake," Zach Frankel, executive director for the Utah Rivers Council, said about the new strategic plan in an Earthjustice press release.
"This vanilla plan is just another piece of propaganda meant to hide the damage actively being done to the Great Salt Lake at the hands of Utah water agencies who have too much power to be reined in by taxpayers."
Other conservation organization leaders say that Steed's plan "lacks specifics."
"The commissioner's plan stops short of meaningfully protecting the Great Salt Lake," said Maria Archibald, lands and water programs senior coordinator at the Utah Sierra Club Chapter.
"Anything less than a tangible plan to restore the lake to a minimum of 4,198 feet is not only insufficient but also a dangerous distraction from an impending environmental catastrophe that will devastate millions of migratory birds, expose communities to toxic particulate matter, and threaten Utah's economic stability."
A spokesperson for Earthjustice told Newsweek that the organization is "focused on ensuring the state complies with its public trust obligation to protect the Great Salt Lake."
"There is no substitute for the public trust, as made clear by the shortfalls in the commissioner's plan," the spokesperson said.
About the writer
Anna Skinner is a Newsweek senior reporter based in Indianapolis. Her focus is reporting on the climate, environment and weather ... Read more
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