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Water Development for the Salt Lake Valley Detailed HistoryThe Beginning In 1847 an advance party of Mormon Pioneers reached the Salt Lake valley on July23 and began the history of the water development and the practice of artificial irrigation. Water was diverted from City Creek to irrigate crops and provide the settlement culinary water. As the City became the population center of the settlement, others moved out to the far reaches of the valley and began diverting the waters of Parley's, Mill Creek, Big Cottonwood, and Little Cottonwood streams. Within the City, waters were diverted from Red Butte Creek and Emigration Creek to augment City Creek as the City's main water supply. Ditches lined each side of the City's streets conveying water to the homes and gardens of City dwellers.
1876 - The Construction of the City Creek tanks, acting as the headworks for the new piped water system to the City's business district in 1875, marked the beginning of the modern-day municipal water system for the delivery of culinary water and fire protection. With the completion of the tanks and cast iron pipe during the spring of 1876, water pure and under pressure was delivered to the tap.
1882 - Brigham Young said, "...the bringing of the waters of Utah Lake would be the means of sustaining a poplulation in the Great Salt Lake County of 100,000."
1885 - In 1885, an agreement was struck between the Utah Lake land owners and the Salt Lake County water users, establishing the "Compromise Elevation" in which water could be stored in the lake. The compromise level allowed the Salt Lake County water users to raise the level of water in Utah Lake to an elevation of 4-1/2 feet below the top of the stone monument at the outlet of the lake between October 15 and March 15.
1888 - Although never a satisfactory culinary water supply, Utah Lake water was suitable for irrigation of crops and farm land. The City provided stored water from Utah Lake through the Jordan and Salt Lake City Canal to the farmers in exchange for the use of their Parleys Creek water. The farmers received a firm water supply during the late irrigation season and protection against drought, while the City gained the higher quality mountain water that could be diverted into a piped distribution system and delivered by gravity to the City.
1904 - The City expanded the concept of the Parleys exchange further to the south. In 1904, the City entered into the first exchange agreement with the owners of Big Cottonwood Creek Big Ditch diversion. The remaining Big Cottonwood farmers entered into agreements during the next twenty years.
1915 - The City began building reservoirs in the Wasatch Canyons to store snow-melt during the spring for release during the late summer and fall months. In 1915 the 742 acre-foot Lake Phoebe-Mary and the 934 acre-foot Twin Lakes Dams were constructed in Big Cottonwood Canyon. In 1917 the first phase of Mt. Dell Dam was constructed, and ten years later the dam was raised to hold 3200 acre-feet of water.
1920 - The Jordan and Salt Lake City Canal was only able to deliver water to the lower farm lands irrigated by Big and Little Cottonwood Creeks. In order to reach the higher bench farms a higher canal was needed. The City acquired stock in the East Jordan Canal in order to complete the exchange of water at the higher elevations.
1935 - The early 1930s was marked by a severe drought adding emphasis to the water advisory board's recommendations. In 1934 the drought reached crisis proportions. This provided the public support to build the Provo River Project. In 1935 the City voters approved Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake City and later in 1937 the debt obligation to participate in the construction of the project by the USBR.
1951 - During the early 50s the suburbs outside of Salt Lake City began to grow. In order to provide the necessary water and sewer infrastructure Special District legislation was passed.
1964 - In an effort to gain the use of the State's share of the Colorado River and meet the growing need for water along the Wasatch Front, the Central Utah Water Conservancy District was formed to sponsor the Central Utah Project (CUP).
1993 - Water services within Salt Lake County have evolved since Salt Lake City developed its water supplies and infrastructure. For the first one-hundred years of the valley's history the City pioneered water development; diverting City Creek, Red Butte and Emigration creeks for municiple uses; constructing the Salt Lake City and Jordan Canal; entered into exchange agreements with the other canyon stream owners; building dams; forming the Metropolitan Water District to build the Provo River Project; drilling wells and helping form the Central Utah Project. As the population in the valley has grown to over three-quarters of a million inhabitants, the delivery of water depends on a complex network of dams, aqueducts, water treatment plants, distribution reservoirs and mains conjunctively managed by the major water supply entities to meet the greater public good. On an annual basis over 230,000 acre-feet of water is delivered to the County's inhabitants, businesses and visitors.
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City Builds Dams
1953 - In 1953 the City undertook a
program to construct facilities in order to meet Public Health Drinking Water Standards.
City Creek Water Treatment Plant was begun in 1953 and completed in 1955, followed by the
Big Cottonwood and Parleys Water Treatment Plants.