S.R. 2

1

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

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

58 Utah.
59 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be sent to the Bureau of
60 Reclamation and to Utah's congressional delegation.




Legislative Review Note
as of 1-22-09 10:31 AM

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel