Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water & Air to release 4th Annual Report to Gov. Spencer Cox

Utah State University’s Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water and Air will release its report to the governor and state legislature at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 3, at Gallivan Hall in Salt Lake City.

The lunch event will include remarks from Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, USU Board of Trustees Chair Jacey Skinner, and the institute’s executive director, Brian Steed. The institute’s managing director, Anna McEntire, will moderate a panel of the report’s faculty authors about their research.

The 2024 edition of the report to the governor and legislature provides an up-to-date look at critical issues in Utah’s land, water and air, including two special chapters focused on Bear Lake and Utah’s forests and rangelands. Each section examines current issues being studied by experts at USU and around the state.

New this year, the report introduces a metrics chapter, highlighting key public datasets on Utah’s natural resources. Topics range from mining extraction to harmful algae blooms, offering insights across geographic and political boundaries.

Report highlights include:

• Recommendations for improving wetland restoration.
• Insights on quantifying snowpack and streamflow for better water management.
• Updates on Utah’s air quality and its impacts.
• Strategies to improve forest management in Utah.
• Analyses on how tourism and growth are affecting Bear Lake’s communities and ecosystem.

The full report will be available online at usu.edu/ilwa/ following the event. Embargoed copies of the report are available upon request from miranda.lorenc@usu.edu.