Watershed Symposium 2024

Come and learn about the challenges of implementing a large-scale river delta restoration close to a major urban area in Utah County.

Full Abstract:
The Provo River Delta Restoration project is one of the largest ecological restoration projects completed in the Jordan River watershed. After 10 years of planning and almost 5 years of construction, this ambitious project has been completed and is now open to the public. The Delta was re-created where the Provo River enters Utah Lake and now provides habitat for the threatened June sucker to grow from larvae to juvenile and provides many recreation opportunities for residents and visitors to the area. With nearly five miles of new river channel, two-hundred acres of open waters, and complete public access to all areas, this will be a resource that is valued for generations to come. This presentation will provide insights into how to develop the needed partnerships to achieve something at this scale and we will discuss some of the challenges of implementing such a large project so close to a highly urbanized area. It required an ambitious vision, perseverance in the face of challenge, and lots of public outreach to get this project done. We hope you can go visit and get on the water, walk with your family, observe the abundant wildlife, and maybe drop in a fishing line at this great location that balances the needs of both fish and people. Check us out at www.provoriverdelta.us.

Ever wonder what’s really going on in Utahns’ minds and hearts when it comes to water? A new values study conducted by Envision Utah, Utah Water Ways, and others helps us understand not just what Utahns care about, but why Utahns care about the things they do. These findings are invaluable for anyone in water policy or public messaging.

Full Abstract:
Envision Utah and Utah Water Ways, along with other partners around the state, just completed a landmark research project to understand what’s in Utahns’ hearts and minds when it comes to water issues. Our findings tell us not just what Utahns care about, but why Utahns care about the things they do. This research will provide invaluable insights for anyone involved in water policy or public messaging.

Among other things, we found that:

• Utahns have high awareness and concern about water issues — though not quite as high as some other western states.
• Many Utahns have a high sense of self-efficacy when it comes to water — they believe they can make a meaningful difference in water conservation.
• Utahns believe that state and municipal governments bear a lot of responsibility to reduce individual water use. 
• Utahns have some significant misconceptions about how water is used and what strategies would do the most to reduce household and community water use. 

In addition, our findings also include “values maps” that represent how Utahns connect water to their deeply held priorities. We also have findings related to landscaping preferences, effective messages to motivate individual behavior changes, and even the words and phrases that Utahns best respond to.

Attendees will learn the answers to these important questions (i.e., learning objectives):

• What does the public understand — and misunderstand — about key water issues?
• What water-related issues do Utahns most care about? Why do Utahns care about those issues?
• What are the deeply held values and beliefs that motivate their priorities? 
• What kinds of tradeoffs are Utahns willing to make to serve their priorities?
• How do priorities, values, and tradeoffs differ by region or other demographics?
• How do we most effectively communicate about water-related issues to motivate behavior change? 

This research is hot off the presses — symposium attendees will be among the first to see the results. The research was conducted with a week-long online focus group and a random-sample survey of 800 Utahns.

This study aims to identify major phosphorus origins in Utah Lake’s watershed, quantify phosphorus influx from each source to Utah Lake, visualize HAB occurrences, and assess the correlation between phosphorus levels and HAB distribution.

Full Abstract:
This study aims to identify major phosphorus origins in Utah Lake’s watershed, quantify phosphorus influx from each source to Utah Lake, visualize HAB occurrences, and assess the correlation between phosphorus levels and HAB distribution. To accomplish this goal, our research team conducted in-situ water sampling and nutrient concentration measurements. We utilized geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing geospatial techniques to categorize key phosphorus sources to Utah Lake, employed empirical models to quantify nutrient runoff, and leveraged Google Earth Engine (GEE) and ArcGIS Pro to automate the processing of Landsat images for visualizing HAB distribution in Utah Lake. The identified key nutrient sources include urban lawns, golf courses, parks, herbaceous, deciduous forest, evergreen forest, mixed forest, hay/pasture, and cultivated crops. Their respective total areas ranged from 9.5 km² to 1,775.7 km², with golf courses being the smallest and deciduous forests being the largest. Notably, urban lawns and cultivated crops, covering 337 km² and 344.41 km2, emerged as two significant phosphorus sources to Utah Lake, despite constituting only 7.5% and 7.6% of the total Utah Lake Watershed area, respectively. Furthermore, our analysis revealed a close correlation between HAB distribution and phosphorus levels in the lake. Prior studies on Utah Lake have focused primarily on phosphorus loading from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and atmospheric deposition. While WWTPs are still the major phosphorus contributors to the occurrence of HABs, our findings suggest that land-derived non-point nutrient sources play a substantial role in triggering HABs in Utah Lake.

This presentation will feature how engineers can help shape a more resilient future leveraging new perspectives and technologies.  Topics include watershed vulnerability assessments, innovative filtration media for stormwater quality treatment, aquifer storage and recovery, and how to leverage socio-economic census data in project prioritization.

Full Abstract:
Water scarcity, water quality impairments, aging infrastructure, a changing climate and the vulnerable populations that will experience all these challenges weigh heavily on the minds of environmental decision-makers these days.  It can be overwhelming to know where to start to help make our watersheds resilient. Fortunately, engineers and scientists have some powerful tools in their resiliency toolbox! This presentation will cover examples of how engineers can help shape a more resilient future,  covering how to leverage new information to help plan and prioritize, new technologies that create better resiliency opportunities, and some new ways of looking at old practices that still stand the test of time. The topics in this presentation will be a “sampler pack” of resiliency tools, including watershed vulnerability assessments for project prioritization, innovative filtration media for stormwater quality treatment, and aquifer storage and recovery.  In addition to providing project examples from Utah and elsewhere in the United States, this presentation will outline ways that today’s practitioners are using census data to incorporate socio-economic considerations into decisions about what to implement first, and where.

The poster session is a forum for presenters to highlight programs and to share successful ideas with colleagues by presenting a research study, a practical problem-solving effort, an innovative program, and more.

Posters are listed alphabetically by title. ==> See Full Abstracts

Establishing a Functional Flows Framework for the Great Salt Lake Basin
Farah Nusrat, Utah State University
Functional flows are components of flow regimes that sustain river, wetland, and the Great Salt Lake (GSL) ecosystems, including hydrological, ecological, geomorphic, and biogeochemical processes. Natural resource managers can utilize this framework to design strategies for increasing resilience of GSL Basin waterbodies to climate change.

Great Salt Lake Playa Dust Suppression via Artificial Surface Crusting
Zachary Claerhout, University of Utah / Department of Atmospheric Sciences
Kevin Perry, Department of Atmospheric Sciences / University of Utah
Dust from the exposed portions of the Great Salt Lake (GSL) lakebed poses a potential health risk that may need to be mitigated if the lake level remains low. This study investigates the efficacy of artificial surface crusting via surface soil saturation as a potential dust suppression mechanism on the GSL playa.

Novel Rapid Lead and Copper Detection Method in Drinking Water
Nick Halverson, e-sens
This abstract presents new viable alternative lead and copper methods for reliable and portable testing applications that would allow much greater access for water and wastewater testers.

Rio Tinto Reduce Reclaim Remediate
Kiani Ellingson, Rio Tinto
Julie LeFevre, Rio Tinto
Rio Tinto Kennecott is committed to environmental water stewardship. From the metering and measuring of everyday water use, the preservation of the Inland Sea Shorebird Reserve, and our donation of water to the Great Salt Lake, these efforts benefit Utah, the community where we operate.