Provo River Restoration: Success or Failure?

Authors

Jared Meek, Brigham Young University
C Riley Nelson, Brigham Young University

Keywords

Provo River restoration, Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission, URMCC, habitat restoration

College

Life Sciences

Department

Biology

Abstract

The Provo River in central Utah flows from its headwaters in the Uinta Mountains, down the heavily agricultural Heber Valley, through the urban center of Provo and Orem, and out into Utah Lake. Beginning in the 1950s, the Provo River underwent significant alterations as part of a large-scale water reclamation project throughout central Utah1, including the channelization and straightening of its middle section. In addition to these alterations, the river had two dams constructed along its course: the Deer Creek Dam (1941) and the Jordanelle Dam (1993). To remedy the ecological impairment that these manipulations caused, the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission (URMCC) was tasked with restructuring a stretch of the Provo River to restore fish and aquatic insect habitat and diversity2.

Recommended Citation

Meek, Jared and Nelson, C Riley (2018) "Provo River Restoration: Success or Failure?," Journal of Undergraduate Research: Vol. 2018: Iss. 1, Article 140.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jur/vol2018/iss1/140