With eyes on the Great Salt Lake, water conservation advocates will remove Governor’s Mansion turf

The lawn at the Utah Governor’s Mansion will become undone on Friday at the hands of water conservation advocates and public employees to make space for water-wise and pollinator-friendly plants amid one the most severe droughts the state has recorded. 

The event is expected to be a milestone of a statewide service initiative from Sept. 10 to Sept. 19, in which volunteers from Slow the Flow, Grow the Flow and Great Salt Lake Rising, as well as state employees, city crews and others, will take on the task of converting public turf into water efficient features to cut outdoor water use.

“For years, Utahns have been waiting for someone else to go first, or for the conditions to be just right. But if we’re asking families to rethink what they do in their own yards, we have to be willing to start at our house first,” Utah first lady Abby Cox said in a statement. 

The plan is to replace the turf along South Temple at the Governor’s Mansion and plant over 1,800 water-wise and pollinator-friendly plants, organizers said in a news release. The project is expected to be the first phase of “a full-perimeter conversion of the mansion grounds.” Remaining park strips updates are scheduled for next spring. 

Converting a water-thirsty lawn to more efficient landscaping could save about 27 gallons of water per square foot annually, the organizations said in the release. That means that one 1,000-square-foot park strip could save about 27,000 gallons a year. 

“Every one of these projects is something a family, a city or a classroom can copy,” Tage Flint, executive director of Utah Water Ways and Slow the Flow said in a statement. “That’s the whole idea — this is a demonstration, and the entire state is invited to participate.” 

While the agricultural sector continues to be the largest consumer of water that would otherwise feed the Great Salt Lake, homes, businesses and institutions account for 27% of the water depleted from the lake, according to state data. That’s why organizers say residents hold part of the solution to the Great Salt Lake crisis. 

In addition to the Governor’s Mansion project, there will be similar landscaping events in South Salt Lake on Sept. 10, in Coalville on Sept. 12 and in Hyde Park on Sept. 19, all from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volunteer registration is open to the public and available at tinyurl.com/utahturf26. 

Ultimately, organizers will measure and document their efforts to release a statewide report including square footage removed lawns and gallons of water that were saved.