Trump administration official Lee Zeldin took a boat tour of the Great Salt Lake on Saturday with Sen. John Curtis and other Utah leaders.
The visit to the lake by Zeldin, who heads the Environmental Protection Agency, comes after President Donald Trump said he would take a special interest in revitalizing one of the nation’s most iconic landmarks.
At a press conference after the tour, Zeldin said he believes that through the collaboration of federal, state and local government, the Great Salt Lake can be restored.
“There’s a whole lot of momentum, and I’m confident that we will be able to put far more than a dent in tackling what requires an urgent solution,” Zeldin said.
In the 2027 federal budget, Trump proposed $1 billion to “restore and protect the Great Salt Lake, which is a critical economic and ecological asset for the Nation,” as stated in the budget.
This funding will go toward directing more water into the lake, removing non-native invasive plant species, restoring the lake’s ecosystem, managing the habitat of threatened bird species and implementing major engineering solutions, Zeldin said on Saturday.
The Great Salt Lake is ‘a national issue’
The officials, who spoke at the Eccles Wildlife Education Center in Farmington, Utah, on Saturday, said the effects of the declining health of the Great Salt Lake are felt nationwide.
They also emphasized the need for federal and state officials to work together to restore the lake.
“For good or bad, this has become a national issue,” Curtis said. “There’s lots of reasons why the federal government should be involved here.”
The water and air quality of the lake affects neighboring states including Idaho, Wyoming and Nevada, Curtis noted.
Zeldin reiterated Curtis’ point, saying the Great Salt Lake supports not only Utah’s economy, but is also a source of many critical minerals needed across the nation. These minerals include magnesium, salt and possibly lithium.
“This is a national issue,” Zeldin said. “It’s important for our national security.”
In February, Trump expressed interest in the health of the Great Salt Lake after a meeting with Utah Gov. Spencer Cox at the White House.
In a social media post after the meeting, the president said the health of the lake is of “tremendous interest” to him, adding he will “MAKE ‘THE LAKE’ GREAT AGAIN!”
Trump later followed up by asking Congress to allocate $1 billion in the federal budget to shore up the lake.
The $1 billion dedicated to the Great Salt Lake would go toward establishing a “comprehensive Federal program” led by the Interior Department, according to the budget, as earlier reported by the Deseret News.
The department would work with the EPA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to improve water flow into the lake.
The history of the lake’s declining health
Concerns over the health of the Great Salt Lake are not new. For years, water levels have decreased due to a combination of drought and excessive water consumption, leaving behind a basin of toxic dust.
While conditions have stabilized, the lake is still 6.4 feet below healthy levels, and more than 1,100 square miles of the lake bed are exposed.
The lake directly contributes $2.5 billion to Utah’s economy each year, which supports 9,000 jobs across several industries.
If the lake continues to shrink, consequences could include increased dust storms and respiratory illness, a collapse of the food chain for birds who feed on brine shrimp, and even a shorter ski season, impacting Utah’s real estate and outdoor recreation economy.
Answers for the Great Salt Lake start in Utah
Brian Steed, Great Salt Lake commissioner, said he is optimistic about the efforts.
“The Great Salt Lake is a beautiful place. It’s an amazing place, and I think that we can absolutely preserve it and keep it going into future generations.”
The effort to restore the lake is a partnership between government, business and philanthropic communities, Curtis said.
“Everybody’s engaged in this to be successful, which makes me feel like no doubt that we’ll achieve it.”
Curtis said that while restoring the lake will require support from the federal government, success will ultimately come from local solutions.
“We’re grateful for the federal government’s help ... but the answers to this lie with the astute men and women here in Utah.”
Contributing: Cami Mondeaux
