Church of Jesus Christ donates millions to save Great Salt Lake water
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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints donated $3 million to the Utah Department of Natural Resources to fight phragmites, an invasive reed species threatening the Great Salt Lake.
The invasive phragmites plant consumes twice as much water as native vegetation and blocks water from reaching the lake. Officials say the lake has lost two-thirds of its water, which impacts the region's snowpacks and local ecosystems.
The church's funding supports a multi-year process to eradicate the reeds using herbicides, mechanical clearing, and burning. This effort aims to replace the tall reeds with inland salt grass, a native plant that grows only one to two feet tall. State officials estimate that replacing the phragmites with inland salt grass would save 82,000 acre-feet of water every year.
The church has also taken other actions to conserve water in the West, including donating 5,700 water shares and releasing 10,000 acre-feet of water from the Jordan River and Utah Lake. These measures help address the shrinking lake, which currently sits only two feet above its record low. The church also manages several water-saving initiatives across the Intermountain West. These include installing over 3,100 smart irrigation controllers and retrofitting buildings to reduce water consumption.
The church stated that it encourages its members to take personal steps and support public efforts to conserve water in the Great Salt Lake Basin.
