- Fugitive dust from the proposed gravel pit is not only a threat to our air quality but also to our increasingly scarce water supply.
- Parleys Canyon is a protected watershed for the Salt Lake Valley and includes Parleys Creek, Mountain Dell Reservoir, and East Canyon Reservoir. The dust from the quarry would create a major new source of pollution for Salt Lake City’s drinking water as it falls into the lakes and streams in the canyon. It would also fall on and darken the surface of the snow, accelerating runoff in the spring and leaving less water to flow into the reservoirs through the hotter summer months.
- The proposed gravel pit would also use enormous quantities of water for rock-crushing operations and in an attempt to suppress fugitive dust. This would not only divert water from reaching the Great Salt Lake, but it would risk also contaminating stormwater that flows into Parleys Creek.
- The quarry would also be a source of major downstream industrial pollution contaminating Parleys Creek, Parleys Historic Nature Park, Tanner Park, the Salt Lake County Club, Sugarhouse Park, Hidden Hollow, Fairmont Park, Three Creeks Confluence Park, the Jordan River, and the Great Salt Lake.
Scenic Value
The size and scope of the proposed I-80 South Quarry would be the largest mining operation in the Central Wasatch Mountains.
