Christian Johnston has been fly fishing in Wasatch County for years. As a West Jordan resident, he travels to the Wasatch Back to enjoy the views and abundance of fishing.
Johnston was fly fishing at Deer Creek State Park on Saturday, when he caught and released two rainbow trout — both too small to keep. That day, the fishing was good, he said. But Johnston has seen the environment of Deer Creek State Park and the Provo River change over the years.
Along with seeing low water levels, Johnston said people seem to care less for the environment. Visitors are leaving beer cans, cigarette butts and more behind, he said. He’s also concerned about harmful algal blooms, which seem to form nearly every year.
Provo River Days volunteers set up at Deer Creek State Park on Saturday seeking to educate recreators such as Johnston about Provo River and water body health. The annual festival had four stops along the riverway where attendees and passers-by could learn more about the natural environment at Deer Creek State Park, Wasatch Mountain State Park, the Jordanelle Reservoir and Vivian Park.
Sandy Wingert of the Utah Division of Water Quality said the major focus this year was on information and outreach. The Provo River headwaters lead into water bodies that provide drinking and irrigation water to Wasatch County residents and some along the Wasatch Front.
Wingert said harmful algal blooms, like the ones recreators such as Johnston notice, are one concern. Elevated nutrient levels cause problems like harmful algal blooms, which lead to fewer people “out and about enjoying their watershed.”
“There’s a lot of various water quality concerns we have in this area,” Wingert said.
Elevated nutrient levels come from nonpoint sources much of the time, such as wastewater treatment facilities, construction, farmers who apply fertilizer to their land and more.
To address environmental concerns, Wingert said they start by answering questions like what type of irrigation is used in farming, how much fertilizer is applied and where soil testing is done. Then, they restore eroded stream banks, work with the Wasatch County Health Department and come up with collaborative approaches to keep the environment and water bodies healthy.
Eric McGill is an educator who brought along three friends: a barn owl named Tyto, an eagle owl named Bubo and an African pied crow named Sheryl. With her long beak, Sheryl took slips of paper from attendees who wrote down what they do to protect water bodies and sources.
Leave no trace was one. Keeping track of water use was another.
McGill said his feathered friends are a reminder that it’s not only humans who are affected by the health of nearby water bodies. For instance, if the Provo River is low, that impacts wildlife and fewer animals and birds visit the area.
Orem resident Mark Jones said it was nice to learn more about development in the area and how it might affect where he lives and also where he recreates in Wasatch County. Jones is an avid biker who travels to Wasatch Mountain State Park for rides, but he remembers a time when Deer Creek Reservoir levels were high enough to waterski in areas that, on Saturday, fly fishers easily waded through.
“Right here was our favorite place to waterski because it was always the smoothest,” Jones said.
The last time he was able to waterski in that area was about five years ago, he said. Now, he tends to recreate elsewhere.
Rachel Winder was another volunteer with the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food.
“A lot of my job is to make sure that we’re putting in practices that are going to prevent that pollution from reaching water bodies like a river,” Winder said. “We can all collectively exercise some stewardship over those pollutants.”
She hoped people would feel more connected with their watershed as a result of Provo River Days. After all, Winder said, it’s up to everyone to collectively care for their environment.