Move The Lower Duchesne River Wetlands Project Petition : [ powered by iPetitions.com ]

Move The Lower Duchesne River Wetlands Project

The petition

I, the undersigned, oppose the Lower Duchesne Wetland Project due to the negative impacts it would have on the health, economy, and cultural heritage of nearby communities. The project will create a breeding ground for disease-bearing mosquitoes in Duchesne and Uintah counties, render scarce farmland useless, endanger burial grounds, and dramatically reduce the quality of life. The development of wetlands should be located far from densely populated areas, and take into account community and expert input.

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Petition sponsor

Dear Neighbors,

We are requesting that you join us in signing this petition against the Lower Duchesne Wetlands Project. This project would create several thousand acres of wetlands in the Basin and have a profoundly negative impact on our quality of life. Large parts of Duchesne and Uintah counties would be affected. Myton City would be turned into an island floating in a swamp of disease-bearing mosquitoes.

Building a marsh right next to densely populated areas is a terrible idea. In 2007 alone, we had five confirmed cases of West Nile Virus in Duchesne County. More wetlands in the area would increase the mosquitoes that carry life threatening diseases to humans and livestock. Dr. Steven Romney, Director of the Uintah Mosquito Abatement District, stated that mosquitoes can travel dozens of miles and has condemned this project. Moreover, the insects will cause a severe nuisance. Many of our community elders can remember the days before we invested millions of dollars in drainage projects when the mosquitoes were so thick you couldn’t talk without getting them in your mouth.

The project would also convert prosperous, tax-generating agricultural land into non-taxed wetlands. This seizure of private property will cause a loss of revenue, thus impacting the quality of services provided to residents and visitors within the region. Property owners within several miles adjacent to the wetland project will suffer from the reduced property values resulting from having an undesirable swamp nearby. Myton City, Duchesne County, and Uintah County have spent millions of dollars draining our cities and fields over the years. To re-inundate the area with water is unacceptable – it would take us back to the days when floods caused coffins to pop out of the graves in the Myton cemetery.

Wetlands are an important part of the environment, but we would like to see them placed in an area downstream so as not to impact negatively any human or animal population. In addition, our ancestral burial grounds should be protected from flooding and the property rights of private citizens should be protected with no imminent domain having to be declared. We disagree with spending millions of dollars in public funds that will only serve to affect thousands of lives and property negatively.

Please join your fellow neighbors in opposing this project. For more information, email myton2@ubtanet.com.

Sincerely,

Your Concerned Neighbors