H.R. 1

1

HOUSE RESOLUTION SUPPORTING THE
2 NARROWS WATER PROJECT IN CENTRAL
3 UTAH
4 2009 GENERAL SESSION
5 STATE OF UTAH
6 Chief Sponsor: Bradley A. Winn
7
8 LONG TITLE
9 General Description:
10 This resolution of the House of Representatives urges Congress and the United States
11 Bureau of Reclamation to support development of the Narrows Water Project in Central
12 Utah.
13 Highlighted Provisions:
14 This resolution:
15 . recognizes the need for adequate water storage for economic viability in the
16 communities of Central Utah, and the decades-long effort to develop the Narrows
17 Water Project;
18 . acknowledges the Narrows Water Project as the least expensive, most cost-
19 effective, and most environmentally sound means of storing water in Sanpete County;
20 . recognizes that the water rights relative to the Narrows Water Project have been
21 legally defined; and
22 . expresses support for the development of the Narrows Water Project in Central
23 Utah.
24 Special Clauses:
25 None
26

27 Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the state of Utah:
28 WHEREAS, water is fundamental to the economic base of Central Utah communities
29 and reliable water storage is necessary for both agricultural and municipal development;
30 WHEREAS, agricultural and municipal interests in Central Utah, including Sanpete
31 County, suffer substantial economic hardship because of the lack of water storage facilities;
32 WHEREAS, in the early 1900s, local, state, and federal government officials
33 acknowledged the need for water storage in Sanpete County and began efforts to develop the
34 Narrows Water Project;
35 WHEREAS, reliable studies by multiple expert water engineering firms have
36 determined the Narrows Water Project to be the least expensive, most cost-effective, and most
37 environmentally sound means of storing water for Sanpete County;
38 WHEREAS, various studies, including a recent independent study by Utah State
39 University, show Sanpete County to be among Utah's most effective users of modern
40 conservation methods to conserve the water that is presently available to the county;
41 WHEREAS, the Bureau of Reclamation recognized the need for water storage in
42 Sanpete County, and as early as the 1930s proposed a plan that would provide water storage for
43 both Sanpete and Carbon Counties;
44 WHEREAS, the component of the Bureau of Reclamation's plan that would provide
45 water storage for Sanpete County was never implemented, initially due to a disruption caused
46 by World War II, and more recently by various questions regarding ownership of the water;
47 WHEREAS, numerous judicial decisions have now clearly established and defined the
48 water rights involved in the Narrows Water Project;
49 WHEREAS, legal agreements between Sanpete County, Carbon County, the state of
50 Utah, and various federal entities have recognized Carbon and Sanpete County's water rights
51 from Gooseberry Creek; and
52 WHEREAS, the residents of Sanpete County, at great financial sacrifice, have waited
53 for almost a century for the Narrows Water Project water storage facility that was promised to
54 them:
55 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
56 state of Utah expresses support for the Narrows Water Project in Central Utah.
57 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives urges Congress and

58 the United States Bureau of Reclamation to support the development of the Narrows Water
59 Project in Central Utah.
60 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Bureau of
61 Reclamation and to Utah's congressional delegation.




Legislative Review Note
as of 12-8-08 12:09 PM

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel