Are trees ‘the enemy?’ Some Utah lawmakers claim overgrown forests suck too much water

(Brian Maffly | The Salt Lake Tribune) Many of the conifers in the Lake Country of the western Uinta Mountains, pictured in 2016, are standing dead thanks to beetle infestation. Lawmakers say northern Utah’s “overgrown” forests are depleting the state’s water resources and must be thinned in order to rescue the Great Salt Lake.