Utah Stream Access Coalition Update

Quarantine and quakes…it has been a pretty surreal ride over the last month, and the Directors of USAC hope that this email finds you and your family healthy and safe. We have been trying to do our part to flatten the curve, and we cannot wait to get back onto the water when the time comes.

USAC prides itself on the grassroots fundraising and lobbying efforts of our members and Directors, and this past legislative session was no different. Hundreds of phone calls, emails, and meetings with legislators in an effort to come up with draft legislation that strikes a balance amongst all stakeholders in this stream access battle. The goal was to develop compromise language that would provide a foundation for stream access rights and responsibilities as we continue to move forward with our lawsuit on the Provo case.

Sponsored by Senator Scott Sandall, SB 63 was drafted to amend HB 141 (2010), the Public Waters Access Act, to provide clarity on key issues that have come to the forefront: a definition of the ordinary high water mark, and strengthened trespass laws. SB 63 was unanimously approved by the Senate, and then moved to the House Natural Resources Committee. Due to threatened actions by a single landowner on the Weber River, SB 63 stalled, and we are left with the current language of the Public Waters Access Act.

As we move closer to the elections in November, it will be extremely important that we continue to emphasize to our representatives how important the issue of public recreational use of Utah’s rivers and streams is to all Utahans. USAC will continue to be on the front lines of the lobbying effort, and active participation by our members will continue to be a key component as we fight for access to OUR waters.

Fundraising

February’s F3T shows were our best fundraising events to date! We would like to thank everyone that came out to support USAC, as well as all of the companies that continue to support our cause. Every dollar raised at F3T has gone to our legal effort on the Provo case, which continues to be our main focus in 2020.

The spread of COVID-19 has undoubtedly affected your daily life, and it has also restricted a lot of the fundraising events that USAC is typically involved in. The amount of time, effort, and money raised for the Provo case is truly impressive, but we cannot let off the gas. The costs of historical research, expert witnesses, and court fees continue to increase, and we need to insure that we throw everything we can behind our effort to secure our access to OUR waters.

As we get closer to our day in court, with your help, USAC will continue to cover the costs of bringing our Provo River case to trial in Utah’s Fourth District Court. Every dollar counts, and with your help and donations we will restore public recreational access to OUR waters.