Provo River restoration workshop set for Thursday

PROVO — The Provo River Delta Restoration Project is holding an evening workshop on Thursday at Utah Lake State Park’s visitors center to solicit ideas for recreational opportunities that could be put into play along approximately the last mile of the river before it enters the lake.

The two-hour session at 4400 W. Center Street begins with a project overview at 7 p.m., followed by a working-group session.

The Provo River Delta Restoration Project has been proposed to facilitate recovery of Utah’s native fish, the June sucker, an endangered fish that lives only in Utah Lake. The continued management and future use of Provo River water is closely tied to the recovery of the June sucker, as well as for all of the fish and wildlife species that depend on the river.

An environmental impact statement is being prepared to identify impacts that would result from the project. Four alternatives have been identified and each proposes to realign the Provo River north of its present location approximately 1.5 miles upstream of its confluence with Utah Lake.

The project team is holding the workshop to help identify potential uses of the existing river channel — such as development of wetlands and riparian habitat, fishing ponds or horseback riding trails. Participants will be asked to comment on these options and provide other ideas.

The Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission, the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Central Utah Project Completion Act Office, and Central Utah Water Conservancy District, in partnership with the June Sucker Recovery Implementation Program, are preparing the analysis.

For more information about the workshop or the project, call Reed Harris at 801-538-7420.

— Amy Joi O'Donoghue Twitter: @amyjoi16