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Show Front region. The study was based on the assumption of manufacturing 14 chemical products mainly from Utah crude oil and minerals extracted from the Great Salt Lake brine. The report gives favorable results on the possibility of locating such a complex near Great Salt Lake. The discovery of a large quantity of oil in the north arm of Great Salt Lake could give new impetus to such a project. Great Salt Lake for many years provided major resort facilities for the tourists and local residents that visited the lake. The late 1880' s and early 1900' s saw the establishment and eventual failure of many resorts around the lake. Black Rock, Garfield Beach, Lake Point, Lake Park, Syracuse, and Saltair all flourished as major resort areas at one time during this period, but all eventually failed. Saltair was perhaps the most popular resort on the lake with swimming facilities, a dance pavilion, and an amusement park. Saltair survived with varying degrees of popularity from 1893 until 1968 when it was once again closed and later destroyed by fire. The continuous fluctuation of the volume of the lake was a common enemy of the resorts. The bottom of the lake has a very gentle slope which results in a large change in surface area for a small change in lake volume. The location of the shore line varies drastically between dry and wetyears. During periods of decreasing lake stage the shore line would recede leaving the resorts high and dry. Saltair lost most of its popularity during the low lake periods of the 1930' s and the 1960' s when the shore line of the lake receded several hundred yards from the pavilion. The present private recreational facilities on the lake are found at Silver Sands Beach. These facilities provide the opportunity to swim, boat, or tour the lake. The use of the lake for boating has grown recently, mainly due to the use of fiberglass craft which, are impervious to the effects of the salt brine. An active group of sail boaters has reestablished the old Salt Lake Yacht Club Charter. The State of Utah has obtained the north end of Antelope Island and established it as the Great Salt Lake State Park. A highway which opened between Syracuse and the Park in 1969 was severely damaged during higher water levels in the lake and reconstruction is nearing completion. Many people in the state feel that the facilities now available on Great Salt Lake are not sufficient to produce the maximum income possible from the tourist industry. Reed T. Searle's ( 1973) view of the problem is, " Tourists by the thousands visit the Great Salt Lake each year although the majority of them leave in disappointment over the lack of facilities and accommodations at the lake. Nevertheless, the potential for attracting and holding tourists in Utah by recreational development at the lake is limited only by the imagination and the development pocketbook." At the 1970 meeting of the Utah Section of the American Water Resources Association, W. M. Katz- enberge expressed this view on the present tourist facilities: The state's interest in development of the southern half of the Great Salt Lake should swing into action rather than remain dormant. Lack of control of the brine flies and lack of development of a clean beach area costs us, the taxpayer, untold dollars per year. We could and would hold tourists in our area for longer periods if we were to develop the Great Salt Lake as a tourist attraction and have motels/ hotels there to give the tourists something to stay for. Cruising upon the lake itself has potential as evidenced by the number utilizing the only operating cruise boat at this time. The islands of Great Salt Lake and the marshlands which are found around the shore of the lake provide nesting and rest areas for a variety of migratory birds. The California gull, white pelican, Caspian tern, great blue heron, and double- crested cormorant migrate inland from the Pacific Coast to nest on the islands of Great Salt Lake. During the spring and summer these birds mainly use the smaller islands for nesting, having abandoned the use of the larger islands. An extensive network of marshlands is found around the shores of Great Salt Lake. These marshlands provide a vital link in the waterfowl flyway extending from Canada to Mexico. Much of the marshland is controlled by federal and state agencies and private organizations. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources operates five waterfowl management areas at the mouths of streams entering Great Salt Lake, and the U. S. Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife operates the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge at the mouth of the Bear River. The rest of the marshlands are managed mainly by private organizations, such as hunting clubs. The continued demand on water upstream from the marshland has the potential of depleting both the quantity and quality of water entering the marsh. If productive marshlands are to be maintained, a supply of water that will fill the evapotranspi ration needs of the marsh plants and provide sufficient outflow to maintain a satisfactory salinity level will have to be dedicated to this purpose. Proper control of water fluctuation within the marshes may provide needed control of the mosquito population, but may also affect the water demand of the marshlands. 7 |