As the Great Salt Lake sees near-record lows, Utahns from across the state gathered at the fifth annual "Save Our Great Salt Lake Rally" on the Utah Capitol steps over the weekend.
Nearly a thousand people attended the rally organized by Save Our Great Salt Lake. The organization’s goal was written on event posters: “Our state leaders have called for the lake’s restoration by 2034 and we’re here to hold them accountable.”
As of Feb. 4, Great Salt Lake water levels were 6.5 feet — or about 35% — below the healthy minimum, according to USGS monitoring stations in Saline, Utah.
Patrick Belmont, a Utah State University professor of watershed sciences, said proposed legislation this session could worsen lake conditions.
“There's H.B. 60 that's been proposed that would allow diversions to not take into account any environmental downstream impacts,." Belmont said. "That's the kind of bill that is going to dry up the lake.”
Event speakers urged attendees to utilize their voices, and encouraged continuous focus on the lake.
Jakey Siolo, director of the Nuanua Collective, a community group for LGBTQ+ Pacific Islanders in Utah, encouraged attendees to celebrate the lake, reflect on the past, and look toward the future.
“Let us show up fully, let us be consistent," Siolo said. "Let us be brave enough to demand environmental justice, human rights and liberation for all people, because water remembers and history will too.”
The rally featured Salina Marina, a drag queen from Salt Lake City and collaborator with the Great Salt Lake Artist Collaborative. They explained the collaborative holds two vigils at the Capitol each week — one on Monday morning and the second on Friday evening.
“We want to bug the legislators on the way in and on the way out," Salina said. "But we mostly also just want to center the community in loving the lake.”
