SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Dec. 11, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Salt Lake City and Sandy have filed a lawsuit against the Utah Department of Transportation, saying its plan for a gondola in Little Cottonwood Canyon potentially threatens their drinking water.
The cities filed the joint lawsuit in federal court Monday, along with the Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake and Sandy, challenging the record of decision for UDOT’s state Route 210 and Wasatch Boulevard in Alta project.
UDOT’s decision followed a multi-year process to meet requirements outlined in the National Environmental Policy Act. The lawsuit seeks to require a supplemental environmental impact statement and new federal record of decision that appropriately considers the impact on water resources.
City officials say the lawsuit seeks to protect the current and future obligations to deliver safe and reliable drinking water to more than 1 million people, businesses and institutions throughout the Salt Lake Valley.
The legal action does not oppose transportation improvements to relieve canyon congestion, but it contends the process by which the alternatives were selected failed to adequately consider the project’s impacts on surrounding natural resources.
“Clean, safe drinking water is not something we take for granted — and we will take every step necessary to ensure this resource is considered and protected for residents throughout the valley,” Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said.
“Salt Lake City made consistent formal requests throughout the process to include such critical analysis, as is required of the NEPA process, environmental impact statement and record of decision to evaluate water resource impacts, but each failed to adequately do so.”
Little Cottonwood Creek is a significant source of drinking water for the Salt Lake Valley’s inhabitants and visitors, city officials said. The proposed Little Cottonwood Canyon transportation projects pose a significant risk to protected watershed areas, the lawsuit contends.
“In this situation, everyone who depends on the water resources from the Little Cottonwood watershed and the Central Wasatch Mountains benefits from a comprehensive process that appropriately considers the impact to water supply and quality,” said Laura Briefer, Salt Lake City’s public utilities director.
“The final environmental impact statement and federal record of decision do not adequately consider this project’s impacts to the water resources that our community relies upon.”
The joint lawsuit also contends the project will increase traffic congestion in Sandy.
“The environmental impact study for Little Cottonwood Canyon did not include SR 209 (Little Cottonwood Road and 9400 South) or Wasatch Boulevard south of SR-209,” Sandy Mayor Monica Zoltanski said. “These routes account for nearly half of the traffic leading into Little Cottonwood Canyon.
“With the addition of a 2,500-stall parking structure at the mouth of the canyon, the influx of additional traffic would have a serious detrimental financial and public safety impact on the most environmentally sensitive area of Sandy City. In addition, we have a shared obligation to protect the Little Cottonwood Canyon watershed, which is the primary source of drinking water for Sandy residents.”
