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PROVO, Utah (AP) -- The rising Utah Lake has eroded a new harbor jetty at Utah Lake State Park.
When the wind blows, water tops the new south jetty and already has eroded it 1 1/2 feet in some places, said Ty Hunter, park director.
"We basically went into an emergency situation to save the investment we've placed out there," Hunter said.
More than $1 million has been spent reconfigure the harbor, which had been made up of two parallel earth-and-concrete berms.
The parallel design allowed the harbor to collect wind-blown silt, making it more shallow each year.
Last year, the Army Corps of Engineers removed 800 feet of the existing 2,000-foot-long south jetty. A new arm of the south jetty was then added, extending toward the north jetty at a 90-degree angle.
The two jetties now come together to form a mouth about 100 feet wide, but the south jetty "takes the full brunt of the lake," Hunter said.
Crews have built a 4-foot rock berm on the west side of the jetty "to stop the wave action and prevent the worst case, a breach of the jetty," he said. "We are just hoping that will minimize the damage. We know there is going to be some damage."
Without the berm, the new jetty would have disappeared, he said.
The park has applied for money to raise the entire jetty another 3 to 4 feet, he said.
The lake is expected to rise another 1 to 2 feet, which could submerge the jetty.
In another development, the EnergySolutions Environmental Foundation, a nonprofit arm by the radioactive-waste company formerly known as Envirocare of Utah, has donated $103,000 toward cleanup of a 5-acre area that was damaged in the floods of 1983. The gift is the largest in memory that has been given to the park, Hunter said.
The money will allow the park to remove cement, appliances and other large debris illegally dumped on the site, he said.
An outdoor classroom, nature trail, amphitheater and covered picnic areas will then be added, said Pearl Wright, foundation director.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
