Phase Two: The Integrated Plan

The recently-completed Work Plan provides a road map for the completion of the Great Salt Lake Basin Integrated Plan. The Work Plan lays out an integrated collaborative approach to making decisions through hydrodynamic modeling, scenario planning, and strategic research. Importantly, the Great Salt Lake Basin Integrated Plan must integrate ongoing efforts and systems, develop meaningful solutions and recommend actions that shape a lasting water legacy for future generations.

GSLBIP Goal:

Ensure a resilient water supply for Great Salt Lake and all water uses, including people and the environment, throughout the watershed.

GSLBIP Objectives:

1. Forge connections
2. Develop a shared understanding
3. Quantify water resources
4. Evaluate options
5. Recommend actions

GSLBIP Studies:

• Great Salt Lake Stormwater Study
• Stormwater study fact sheet
• Stormwater study report

Background

Water levels in Great Salt Lake – the largest saline lake in the Western Hemisphere – are in decline, posing significant consequences for the environment, ecology and economy. In recent years the state has implemented numerous changes to water law and policy, conducted invaluable research, and established several programs intended to bring water to Great Salt Lake. Several initiatives aimed at getting water to Great Salt Lake have called for an integrated water resource assessment and planning tool that will help the state better understand the water supply and demand in the Great Salt Lake Basin. These initiatives include HCR 10 “Concurrent Resolution to Address Declining Water Levels of the Great Salt Lake,” Water Strategies For Great Salt Lake and the Great Salt Lake Strike Team Policy Assessment.

In order to create an integrated plan, during the 2022 Utah legislative session, HB 429 was passed. This bill directed the Division of Water Resources to develop and implement the Great Salt Lake Watershed Integrated Water Assessment.

The division was also awarded a WaterSMART grant in December 2022 to develop a Great Salt Lake Basin Study. With similar objectives aimed at better understanding the complex water supply and demand in the Great Salt Lake Basin, these two projects have merged to become the Great Salt Lake Basin Integrated Plan.

These combined projects will help to ensure a resilient water supply for Great Salt Lake and its watershed by:

• Assessing current surface and groundwater supply in the Great Salt Lake Basin
• Forecasting future water demands
• Investigating potential benefits of forest management and watershed restoration
• Coordinating efforts to quantify and incorporate demand into the water supply and demand model
• Identifying and evaluating best management practices to provide a reliable water supply
• Analyzing the trade-offs in relation to impacts on water users throughout the basin and avoiding deterioration of agriculture, industry and ecosystems
• Recommending actionable strategies for the holistic management of water resources

The development of a collective assessment and planning tool encompassing the entire Great Salt Lake Basin is a massive undertaking that has never been completed before. Thus, the project will be completed in two phases. Phase one developed a Work Plan to lay out the approach for completing the Great Salt Lake Basin Integrated Plan. This Work Plan was completed in November 2023. Phase two will then initiate the longer process of creating the actionable integrated plan, which will conclude in late 2026.

Partners