The Advocacy for Community and Environment, on behalf of Beaver, Millard, Juab and Tooele counties, wrote a letter to high-level politicians recently, reiterating its concern regarding the Pine Valley Water Supply Project in central Utah, which is supported by Iron County.
“As neighboring counties that share the same groundwater resources, we believe clear communication is essential on projects that affect us all. The Utah counties wish to reaffirm that our position has not changed: our counties remain firmly opposed to the project,” the letter read.
There is no mincing of words
“The project is outdated, poorly conceived, and ultimately infeasible. (The U.S. Geological Survey) hydrologic modeling raises the strong possibility that pumping at the proposed levels would cause the project wells to run dry, preventing the project from producing the water it promises,” the letter read.
“In the meantime, because pumping appears likely to exceed Pine Valley’s sustained yield, it is predicted to trigger large-scale drawdowns and irreversible harm to aquifers, agriculture, and wildlife throughout the Utah Counties and beyond, including potential impacts to the shared aquifers that extend into neighboring Nevada.”
Iris Thornton, counsel for Beaver County, said the proposed project is unsustainable, and while there is a need for water, it should not compromise neighboring counties, or even two states.
The letter went out Tuesday to key lawmakers, including Utah Sen. Mike Lee, Utah Rep. Celeste Maloy and multiple members of the Utah Legislature.
What is the Pine Valley Water project?
On its website, the Central Iron County Water Conservancy District details the issue:
In 2021, the State Division of Water Rights implemented a Groundwater Management Plan for the Cedar City Valley. This plan will gradually reduce total underground water rights in the valley (approximately 50,000 acre-feet) down to safe yield (available water) of 21,000 acre-feet.
Due to this plan, local municipalities (Cedar City, Enoch City, and the district) will experience a 75% reduction in their underground water rights by the year 2070
Cedar Valley also saw a large increase of approximately 350% in the cost of water rights between 2019 and 2022.
The intricacies of water use
Paul Monroe, general manager for the district, said critics can gripe, but the primary goal is to have enough water for the future. The issue has already been litigated in the courts and the state’s top water guru ruled in favor of the project.
“Legally we have done everything we are supposed to do,” Monroe said.
Opponents say they mean business
In Tuesday’s letter, the project’s critics were firm.
“We therefore urge Iron County to reconsider spending millions of local, state, and federal dollars on a project that is unlikely to solve its water problems and would only push them several years down the road, harming its neighbors in the process and ensuring conflict. Asking your residents and taxpayers statewide to shoulder the cost of a project with a high likelihood of failure is more than unsound policy. It is a political mistake that could haunt Iron County for years to come,” the letter read.
“Instead, we encourage pursuit of a true, lasting solution. We recognize that all of our counties face serious water challenges, and we do not want to see counties in both Utah and Nevada forced into conflict over a shared public resource. We invite Iron County and CICWCD to work with us on cooperative, sustainable strategies that will protect our collective future.”
Kyle Roerink, with the Great Basin Water Network, also said the project has completely ignored the water rights of Native American tribes that will put them in jeopardy.
“I think Iron County has the political juice and their rights are more important than any other rights,” including Snake Valley which straddles Utah and Nevada’s border, he said.
“This idea is that you can sink a bunch of straw in the grounds there and expect no impacts to occur is not realistic,” he said. They are just looking at paper water which is water that is not there."
In the interim, the BLM has released a final environmental statement and is expected to issue a final order in December.
Iron County is certain it will prevail.