Salt Lake City is snuggled in a valley between the Wasatch and Oquirrh Mountains. Since it was founded in 1847, one of the most prevalent concerns has been water. Salt Lake is in high desert and receives an average 15.3 inches of rainfall per year. Water consumption on the other hand is among the highest in the nation at 220 gallons per person per day. Much of this usage is for irrigation, peaking in the hot summer months.

Surface water is critical to the valley. Eighty percent (80%) of the City’s water supply is from the mountain streams, the mountains get an average 500 inches of snow per season. As this snow melts, the water becomes available for use in the valley. The Wasatch Mountains however provide more than the water supply for the valley. They also provide an economic base, and vast recreational opportunities that enhance the quality of life in the area.

When Salt Lake City began to grow it was clear that additional water would have to be appropriated. Farmers in the valley were also faced with a dilemma, they had adequate water during the spring and early summer as the streams ran high but come late summer there was inadequate stream flow to mature their crops. An exchange agreement was formed. The high quality water from the mountain streams would be substituted for irrigation quality water from Utah Lake. This appropriated enough high quality water for the City for the next fifty years, but it also established a long-term requirement to provide water for irrigation.

The mountains outside of Salt Lake have suffered from numerous indignities. In the early 1900’s, the area was involved in silver and lead strikes and the mountains were littered with mining operations. The West was known for its cattle and sheep herds and these animals were run through the Wasatch Mountains. Quarrying and timber industries stripped the mountains of their glory. However, the community leaders always recognized that protection of the streams was critical to the future of the valley. In 1851, Brigham Young declared that the waters in City Creek canyon were protected for the City’s water supply, and that it was illegal to take herds through the streams. Subsequently, in 1912 the first watershed patrol officers were delegated.

In 1913, the Salt Lake City officials petitioned to the federal government to designate the primary purpose of these mountains to be water. Public Law 199, removed federal lands from mineral location and surface disposal. The Secretary of Agriculture was directed to administer the lands in cooperation with the City with the primary objective being water quality. In 1934, the federal government was again addressed to protect the southern mountains from mining degradation. In that legislation, PL 259, future mineral rights were outlawed, and reserved the surface estate to the United States. In 1989, President George Bush signed legislation reconfirming these acts.

Today Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County and the Forest Service cooperatively manage the Salt Lake City watershed. Lands are managed with water quality as the primary goal. Recreation is allowed and the public is invited to the mountains for year round activities. The watershed is the home to four world class ski resorts, supports hiking, biking and mountain climbing activities along with golf, camping, hunting and picnicking. The area survives because of watershed management practices.

Figure 1:Coliform counts have been historiclly below 100cfu/100ml.

 Since records have been kept the water quality in the mountain streams has been excellent. Today in the heaviest used national forest in the country, more visitor days per year than Yellowstone, the coliform counts in the canyon streams are less than 100 cfu/100mls. Areas protected for water quality have counts less then those sections that are not controlled. Big and Little Cottonwood streams have bacteriological counts less than Emigration and Millcreek Canyons. Emigration is primarily residential and Millcreek is a recreation area without watershed management regulations.

Figure 2: Watershed control measures influence the coliform counts.

What are the watershed rules and how are they enforced? Watershed regulations have been established with community input and support. Currently, neither grazing nor horses are allowed in the canyons. Domesticated animals, dogs, are limited by permit to full time residents in the canyons, and they are required to be confined to their property. Camping is allowed only in designated areas, backcountry camping requires camps to be a minimum of 200 ft from any water body. Body contact, swimming and bathing are not allowed in any stream, lake or reservoir. Salt Lake City retains a permanent watershed staff of 5 watershed officers. These individuals are allowed to enforce watershed restriction and can issue tickets for non-compliance. The main duty of the watershed officers however is to educate the public to the watershed restrictions.

Salt Lake City also supports 5 additional officers for the County Sheriffs department for watershed enforcement. Due to cuts in the federal budget for the Forest Service, Salt Lake City financially supports additional backcountry officers for the Forest Service.

The Watershed Masterplan of 1988 designated a $0.25/ connection/month fee for the establishment of a canyon land purchase program. This fund also allows the use of the monies for acquisition of water rights. The policy has provided the City the opportunity to purchase 1000 acres of land during the last ten years. Partnerships were forged as urged by the ’88 plan. A water sales moratorium was initiated in 1981 and recommended to continue in the ’88 plan, this program basically halted development, since construction could not take place without water.

During the decade following the ’88 Masterplan, many changes took place in the Valley. Ski resorts were looking at expansion, backcountry camping was proposed and accepted. In 1990, the water sales moratorium was lifted and water could only be obtained through a water sales contract with the City or a spring wholly contained on the property. Although this policy was restrictive, some additional development began taking place. Salt Lake City was awarded the 2002 Winter Olympics. And the bacteriology of the mountain streams changed. Coliform counts from 1994 to 1997 showed a consistent increase. The typical pattern of higher counts during the summer months disappeared, and was replaced by a year round pattern of higher counts. The very low counts that had been present in the first half of the decade were no longer found. The concern the City holds for the watershed prompted the award of a contract for the development of a new masterplan.

The process for the development of this plan was highlighted by public participation. The areas of concern were developed by the watershed management team composed of Salt Lake City/County Health Department, Forest Service, Salt Lake County and Salt Lake City. Public hearings were held devoted to gathering the concerns of the community. The meetings were publicized on the water bills, in the newspaper and on the radio. Participation was limited, presumably because the canyons are well managed so concerns are minimal.

The ’98 plan centers heavily on education. With expanding population, the need for information on our watershed and water supply is critical. The assumption that ignorance is the major cause of problems in the watershed has prompted the proposal of major educational programs. Backcountry camping will require a group permit, when 10 or more individuals will be involved, to allow for the dispersal of information on no trace camping and to protect sensitive lake basins. Stricter enforcement of infractions will encourage compliance, so the department will consideradditional enforcement personnel.

Contact with recreational users will be a focal point of the enforcement team. Dog ordinances will be reviewed, and strengthened where necessary. Contact with the Congressional Delegation will be initiated to provide insight on watershed issues. Restrictive use of the watershed has been considered but it is a last ditch effort being retained for a critical situation. Land purchase is still considered the best way of retaining control in the watershed. The 98 plan suggests an increase in community contribution to the watershed land purchase fund.

The intent of Salt Lake City Public Utilities is to continue the operation of the watershed as a multiple use recreation area. The increasing concerns over the water quality in the mountain streams indicates a need to reach out to the recreational user and reinforce the necessity of protecting the watershed and maintaining high water quality. The additional issues relating to immerging pathogens strengthen the City’s stance for strong regulations that are fully understood by the community.