3 out of 4 Utahns are concerned about state's water situation, survey finds
| KSL | April 5, 2025 | Carter Williams|
“Fear about Utah's future water needs is high as the state's population continues to grow, according to a new survey conducted by a nonprofit dedicated to planning the state's future.
About 3 out of 4 of the survey's 800 respondents said they were at least a little concerned about Utah's overall water situation, Envision Utah noted in a summary of its results published on Thursday. Of those who said they were concerned, half said they were either "very" or "extremely" concerned about the situation
While the respondents were split on whether they believe Utah has enough water "to meet our needs today," nearly 6 out of 10 wrote they weren't sure that would be the case in 20 years. As such, those who participated rated water as the second-most pressing issue in the state, below housing/the cost of living but above other issues like air quality, education and economic development....”
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Can Southern Utah build its way out of a housing crisis?
| St. George News | March 28, 2025
| Nick Fiala |
“The simple law of supply and demand is at the root of an affordable housing crisis affecting Washington County and the rest of Utah.
This problem is not just hurting those who are trying to move into Utah. It is also hurting longtime state residents, such as retirees and average citizens whose income is supposed to be well above the poverty level…
In the following order, more than half of the Envision Utah survey respondents blamed these factors for the crisis: rising interest rates, construction costs, developer or landlord greed or they said that there were just too many people coming to Utah. Approximately one-third of those surveyed said the problem was that there was simply not enough housing available... ”
Utah is overdue for a big earthquake. Are we prepared?
| KSL News | March 18, 2025 |
| Amy Joi O’Donoghue |
“The 5.7 magnitude earthquake caused extensive damage to buildings in Magna and at a trailer park elsewhere in the county.
Envision Utah took a hard look at people's sentiments ahead of the five-year anniversary and detailed some interesting findings:
Although the "big one" is long overdue and likely to hit within the next 50 years, the occurrence of such a catastrophic event does not rise to the top level of people's concerns.
Federal Emergency Management Agency modeling predicts more than 3,000 deaths, 9,300 people critically injured and 84,400 displaced households if a 7.0 magnitude earthquake were to hit Salt Lake County.
"We expected people might be a little skeptical about the seriousness of an earthquake… But what we saw is that Utahns definitely are worried about a major earthquake’ said Jason Brown, VP of Education and Communication at Envision Utah.”
This Utah university is eliminating administrative positions to respond to state-imposed budget cuts
| Salt Lake Tribune | March 15, 2025 | Courtney Tanner|
“Constrained by state-imposed budget cuts, Weber State University is overhauling its College of Education — which trains a significant portion of the state’s K-12 teachers.
The Ogden school announced in an email sent to faculty Thursday that it is eliminating the top administrative position of dean of the college and folding the college’s departments in with other studies at Weber State. Fears from professors spread quickly on social media, with many worried what the shift would mean for their jobs…
The state, overall, is also critically understaffed in its K-12 schools, with a teacher shortage that has persisted for years.
A 2023 study from Envision Utah estimated that about 1,500 students graduate each year and are ready to become teachers in Utah. At the same time, about 3,000 teachers leave the profession annually.”