Pub. 3 2020-21 Issue 2

34 Bureau, there is a significant need for new roads and highways, as well as for mass transit and other methods of transportation. Utah is one of the leading states in the country for using innovation to find solutions to the State’s transportation needs. Recommendations for Utah to maintain and raise their grade on roads are: • continue to use state funding for transportation projects from sustainable and appropriate funding sources • increase the gas tax and continue to find alternative transportation revenue such as the Road Usage Charge program • continue to improve life cycle costs assessments to determine a project’s true cost and use this information to select projects that provide the best value to the State and its residents • continue to invest in research to identify technologies and innovative transportation systems to improve congestion and safety • invest in infrastructure to facilitate the use of autonomous vehicles and vehicle to vehicle communications Solid Waste: B- Since 2013, the number of solid waste landfills in Utah has increased from 107 to 122 while only 5% of the state’s total usable landfill area has been used. While the system’s capacity is increasing, the current condition of the state’s solid waste sector is somewhat unknown as Utah’s Solid Waste Master Plan has not been updated in nearly 15 years. Future needs Utah’s estimated population in 2023 is projected to be about 3.4 million, and it is projected to increase more than 40% by 2040. With the increasing population and no behavior change in recycling pattern, an increase in the total tonnage of solid waste is expected. From the forecast, there will be roughly 7.8 million tons of solid waste generated by 2023 asserting more capacity demands on the state’s existing landfills. To address this issue and raise the solid waste grade, Utah needs to: • educate Utah residents about solid waste recycling • conduct regular DEQ landfill facility inspections • update the Solid Waste Master Plan Stormwater: C+ It is estimated that there are between 5,000 to 10,000 miles of storm drains in Utah. These systems range in age from the early 1900s to current development projects being completed each month across the state. Systems are being converted to storm drains as urbanization is increasingly requiring canal owners to evolve from water conveyance for farming to flood management conduits for municipalities. However, canals are not the best type of stormwater conveyance infrastructure due to the decreasing capacity as they move downstream. With aging systems, it is important to perform maintenance and repair to ensure appropriate operation; however, not all of the state’s stormwater systems have and exercise asset management. Dependent on stormwater utility fees and limited state-level funding and financing resources, ongoing upkeep to avoid system failures and to comply with new stormwater standards may become more challenging. However, addressing the increasingly stringent standards will likely fall onto stormwater system owners as the state only has $1 million to contribute to innovative stormwater projects. continued from page 33