HB 328 Water Usage Modifications
HB 328 improves air quality outcomes in Utah by directly reducing outdoor water use associated with nonfunctional turf in new development and significant redevelopment within the Great Salt Lake drainage. The bill prohibits the use of overhead spray irrigation for turf that serves no active recreational purpose, such as grass in parking lot islands, park strips, medians, steep slopes, and other purely aesthetic areas, beginning in 2027. By targeting nonfunctional turf in growing commercial, institutional, and multifamily developments, the bill addresses one of the most water-intensive and least beneficial forms of landscaping.
From an air quality perspective, this reduction in consumptive water use has an important downstream benefit: protecting inflows to the Great Salt Lake. As lake levels decline, exposed lakebed becomes a significant source of wind-blown dust that contributes to PM₂.₅ pollution along the Wasatch Front. By conserving water at the development stage, before demand is locked in, HB 328 helps stabilize water availability in the Great Salt Lake basin and reduces the long-term risk of additional dust emissions that would worsen particulate pollution and public health outcomes.
The bill also supports air quality in more immediate and localized ways. Less overhead irrigation reduces soil disturbance, runoff, and evaporative loss, while still allowing flexibility for temporary dust suppression during construction or special events. Importantly, HB 328 preserves water use for genuinely active spaces such as parks, sports fields, and community gathering areas, ensuring that public amenities are maintained while eliminating wasteful practices that do not provide meaningful social or environmental benefits. Overall, HB 328 represents a preventive air quality strategy: it reduces future PM₂.₅ risk by addressing water use and land-use decisions now, before declining lake levels and dust exposure become harder, and far more expensive, to manage.
Sponsors
Rep. Okerlund
Position
Support
Status - Failed to advance to final passage
2/3 To House Political Subdivisions
2/6 House Political Subdivisions. Passed. Favorable Recommendation 7-2-3
2/18 House 3rd Reading. Passed 39-29-7
2/27 To Senate Gov. Ops
3/3 Senate Gov. Ops. Passed. Favorable Recommendation 5-1-1
3/4 Senate 2nd Reading. Returned to Rules
3/6 Senate 2nd Reading
Scheduled Hearings
