Separate from the referendum petition, their is one big major concern being created by the WPR development:
Water.
WPR has filed for 5 reservoirs with dams, varying in heights from 19ft to a whopping 70ft tall. They have also applied for a Water Rights Exchange with UDWR for 2000-acre feet of water. Their proposal is to extract water out of the Morgan valley Aquifer by exchanging it with storage water in Rockport Reservoir. This represents a significant change in water management in Morgan Valley. Downstream water users are reliant on the groundwater that is discharging into the channel of the Weber River between Stoddard and Mountain Green.
The rate at which WPR plans to pump has the potential to interfere with existing downstream rights. There is extensive evidence in scientific literature that groundwater pumping adjacent to rivers will pull water that historically flowed to the rivers or will pull water from the river directly. There is concern that surface water availability will be reduced, that trout habitat will be harmed due to cool, ground water water being replaced by warmer, more polluted surface water flowing into the Weber River (a Blue Ribbon Trout Stream).
There is time to voice your concern! Please email waterrights@utah.gov - in the subject line please reference (E 5979) 35-13630.
WPR has also filed a Section 404 permit application with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the discharge of dredged and/or fill material into the waters. They are proposing to fill the valley bottoms of both Jacob's Creek and Peterson Creek to construct roads, utilities, and alpine ski runs. And as we understand it, they are also wanting to reconstruct and divert these creeks, which would potentially have an extremely large impact.
Both Peterson creek and Jacob's creek are some of the essential spawning areas for cutthroat trout and filling these drainages could potentially have a severely negative impact on them. These streams are unique in that they are one of the few places that contain pure strain Bonneville cutthroat trout. Natural steams such as Jacob's creek and Peterson creek have a physical, biological and chemical process to keep the water clean. Reconstruction/Diverting said streams would impact water quality greatly and thus, have a negative impact on the Pure Strain Bonneville Cutthroat trout. We should be doing everything in our power to mitigate any and all damages done to their habitat.
We are also concerned about how this will impact the municipal Peterson water supply. It could potentially impact it greatly
Overall, these are not small changes to the valley bottom, these are large and substantial changes that could completely alter the character of these streams in unknown ways.
It is important to note that we are not the only ones concerned with this. Trout Unlimited has major concerns with the stream alterations and water rights aspects of WPR's proposed project. The petition sponsors along with Trout Unlimited, have requested an environmental evaluation and Environmental Impact Statement be completed before any action is taken by the Corps on WPR’s permit.
If you have concerns about this and want to save the Pure Strain Bonneville Cutthroat Trout's habitat, voice your concerns and please email Michael.A.Pectol@usace.army.mil and reference Public Notice SPK-2018-00538 – Wasatch Peaks Ranch, LLC (WPR)
HELP US SAVE THE HABITAT FOR THE PURE STRAIN BONNEVILLE CUTTHROAT TROUT!
Click here to see the exchange details from Utah Division of Water Rights? Click Here
To read articles about Trout Unlimited and their efforts to protect the Bonneville Trout, Click Here and Here
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