TAKEAWAY
Water flows through our lives, our economy, communities, and the natural environment, and all individuals and institutions are responsible for its use.
The Great Salt Lake has largely been taken for granted for the past 100 years. We are learning more about how important the lake is to Utah’s identity and the livelihood of its people. The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad made Salt Lake City a regionally prominent city, and the Wasatch Front was recognized for its unique culture, scenery, and industrious people. The railroad and Interstate 15 promoted an industrial swath, with growth extending to the lake. The lake itself was seen as utilitarian and often as a dumping ground.
With the lake’s water level in jeopardy, Utahns are growing concerned for the future of this unique and delicate place. A commonsense approach includes input from significant users of the water and evaluating which of their uses are most important to the area’s long-term prosperity. It’s also useful to map and know the watersheds that feed our valleys, grow our crops, and provide water to the lake, and to gather the residents and leaders of the cities, towns, and rural communities in those areas to discuss how everyone can do their part.
USU’s Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning Studio and graduate students have engaged three major stakeholders—the Weber Basin Water Conservancy, Great Salt Lake Advisory Council, and the Nature Conservancy—to identify projects, policies, and public outreach to increase awareness of the problems, and invite collaborative solutions. This work sets the stage for the department’s broader exploration of issues and possible solutions.
Each year USU’s LAEP Department takes on a planning challenge that becomes the focus of every graduate and undergraduate student, faculty members, and some dedicated alumni mentors. The result is a charrette—a meeting in which all stakeholders in a project attempt to resolve conflicts and map solutions. The focus of the 2023 charrette is the Great Salt Lake. Teams will examine specific issues and their relevance to the future of the lake and surrounding communities. They will study the geology and geography, watersheds, industrial activities and communities that are connected with the lake. Teams will evaluate challenges and opportunities for sustainable solutions through a lens of community values, policies, practices that impact the lake and wetlands, and the realities of the lake’s conditions and projected future. Ultimately, the department will host a charrette with stakeholders and publish its work and recommendations in spring semester 2023.
