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Salt Lake County Calling For Water Conservation Efforts

Brian Grimmett
Salt Lake County Councilwoman Aimee Winder Newton stands with Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District GM Richard Bay to ask Salt Lake Valley residents to conserve water

The Salt Lake County Council is preparing to vote on a resolution calling for people to follow smart water conservation guidelines.

Salt Lake County Councilwoman Aimee Winder Newton is spearheading the campaign to encourage people living in the Salt Lake Valley to conserve water. She says while the resolution isn’t putting in place any restrictions, she feels it’s important to try and get people to start changing their water use habits.

“We’re just setting guidelines for our residents," she says. "We’re hoping that they’ll turn to Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District, watch that website, see what advisory changes there might be over the summer, and just start getting into the habit of conserving water as they water their lawns.”

Richard Bay is the general manager of the Jordan Valley Water Conservancy District. He says the record low snow pack has made water conservation a critical issue this year. He also warned people to not be fooled by the recent rainstorms.

“These rainstorms did not become a drought buster," he says. "But instead, what they’ve done is help us focus attention on the fact that we should not be irrigating our lawns and gardens this week.”

While Bay stressed the long-term importance of making a cultural shift in the way we use water, he says they do not expect to need to implement any strict water use restrictions in the Salt Lake Valley this year. 

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