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Court finds public-trust applies to waters of Great Salt Lake; litigation to define trustee duties continues
Summary
The Attorney General’s office told the board a court has held that Utah’s public trust includes the navigable waters of Great Salt Lake, but the court declined to order upstream curtailment of diversions; further litigation and discovery will define trustee duties and planning obligations.
Sarah Schechter of the Attorney General’s Office briefed the board on recent litigation developments in Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment v. Department of Natural Resources (opinion issued March 27). Schechter summarized the decision’s two principal holdings relevant to the board:
1) The court held Utah’s public trust includes the navigable waters of the Great Salt Lake — the opinion applies to the waters of the lake itself, not to upstream streams or tributaries. Schechter said the court’s language covered both beds and the…
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