Utah Considers Stricter Rules for Development in Landslide Prone Areas

According to the Salt Lake Tribune article, the working group may recommend that the state:

  • Update and digitize geologic-hazard maps.
  • Ensure city and county planners and planning commissioners are trained to understand property rights and litigation threats.
  • Craft a model geologic-hazards ordinance for cities and counties and encourage them to add a hazards element to their general plans.
  • Establish new grading codes based on California’s experiences.
  • Provide geologic engineering and geotechnical expertise to local governments.
  • Ensure geotechnical experts’ recommendations are heeded.
  • Bolster Utah’s standards for engineering geologists and geotechnical engineers.
  • Emphasize engineering geology programs at Utah universities.
  • Form a task force to spell out how to ensure home buyers know of any geologic hazards.
  • Create a post-mortem process to learn what went wrong when landslides occur.

On a side note, the article also mentions that the University of Utah in Salt Lake has recently resurrected its geological engineering program under the Department of Geology and Geophysics.

 Here is an editorial from the Salt Lake Tribune on the same topic.