Family near Box Elder County data center worries about water quality going back into the lake

Added: 2026-05-26

[00:00:00]All right, so family working next to the property is protesting the data center, not just because of its potential water usage, but also about concerns on how it will impact water quality.

[00:00:10]>> News specialist Aaron Cox explains from Hansel Valley.

[00:00:16]There's a lot of family history at the Great Salt Lake.

[00:00:19]>> We used to camp here and the water was right up to the shore.

[00:00:22]>> At 13, Rhonda Anderson Lauritzen was swimming at the north end of the lake.

[00:00:27]And now you have to walk 4 and 1/2 miles to reach the water. Since 1969, the Andersons company, Mineral Resources International, have extracted minerals from the Great Salt Lake.

[00:00:39]>> As the minerals concentrate, we pump it from pond to pond.

[00:00:42]>> Using these 5-acre ponds, the Andersons create products for hundreds of businesses worldwide.

[00:00:50]But now these ponds are empty. The Andersons can only use the south side of the lake. We want to use this facility.

[00:00:57]This is our preferred location because it's pristine. It's the perfect spot for us. But no, we can't use it today. And you can see why. Where I'm standing, this used to be filled with water and they say it hasn't been this way for at least 10 years. We were here in the '80s and '90s and this was a beach.

[00:01:16]>> As the water receded, the Andersons built a canal to reach it. They even signed an agreement to reduce their water rights use each year depending on how full the lake is.

[00:01:26]>> We are currently at a 50% use of the Great Salt Lake water rights. So we will only be able to use 30% of our our total water rights starting in 2027.

[00:01:41]>> That's before we talk about the new Stratus data center going right next to their property, Hansel Valley, where the Stratus data center will use irrigation water from the property rights they acquire. And even though developers say they're not taking water directly from the Great Salt Lake, Ronda worries about these salt wells, which feed into the lake.

[00:02:01]>> So, we're concerned not only with how much, but what are they going to do to it? People directly consume this product. So, if they put in forever chemicals, for example, they might say they've cleaned it, but they're chemicals that don't come out.

[00:02:18]>> [clears throat] >> the Andersons have filed water quality and quantity protests against the data center.

[00:02:23]>> We are not opposed to data centers per se. It just needs to happen in the right place.

[00:02:29]>> Hoping to restore not only the Great Salt Lake, but their family legacy.

[00:02:33]>> This is my home.

[00:02:35]And I'm going to fight for my home.

[00:02:37]That gives me hope. Erin Cox, KSL 5 News.