Utah received $60 million in a settlement with the federal government following a land exchange agreement. These funds will be used exclusively for projects that benefit the Great Salt Lake.
The agreement transfers 22,311 surface acres along the Great Salt Lake to the federal government to be included in the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. In return, Utah receives $60 million of funding for the Great Salt Lake. It will be paid out in four payments over the next 26 months.
This agreement settles a long legal dispute over the land near the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and provides necessary funding to preserve the health of the Great Salt Lake.
“This is a big win for the health of the Great Salt Lake,” Gov. Spencer Cox said. “We took a decades-old dispute and turned it into $60 million or more that will go right back into the lake.” The funds will be used to increase water reaching the Great Salt Lake, conserve and restore wetlands and habitat and secure additional state and federal resources for the lake.
The land granted to the federal government will remain part of the Great Salt Lake ecosystem and will be managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Public use and access will continue to be granted per federal refuge regulations.
“A great example of collaboration in the Utah legislature,” Cox said. “There is still a lot of work ahead, but Utah is making real progress. We’ll continue to put more water in the lake and protect this vital natural habitat.”
This agreement is a part of the effort to save and restore the Great Salt Lake, which has been rapidly drying up in recent years.
Author: Asa Burns
Photo courtesy Rick Bowmer, AP News
Editor: Hannah Clove
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