Utah–The Geoheritage State
by Mark Milligan, Jim Davis, Mackenzie Cope, and Stefan Kirby
Most Utah counties contain at least one potential geoheritage site, with some notable exceptions shown on the map above.
Geoheritage sites are significant geologic features, landforms, and view-scapes that are valuable for scientific research, outdoor classrooms, education, and public enjoyment. These sites are important to preserve for the worth that society places on them, including scientific, aesthetic, cultural, ecosystem, education, recreation, and tourism. The Utah Geological Survey (UGS), as part of a U.S. Geological Survey STATEMAP grant, is inventorying and ranking potential geoheritage sites in Utah to assist and promote the recognition and protection of these areas.
Our inventory process started by compiling a database of places or geologic-related features that might fit the criteria of a geoheritage site. We added sites from existing sources such as Survey Notes’ “GeoSights” and “Rockhounder” (which preceded “GeoSights”) articles, the Utah Geological Association’s (UGA) publication Geosites, and an inventory of geologic road signs. We also solicited UGS staff to help brainstorm for suitable sites. To gather ideas from the public we crowdsourced potential sites at the 2024 Geological Society of America Joint Cordilleran and Rocky Mountain Section Meeting by setting up an exhibitor’s table, creating a poster, and handing out fliers with a QR code link to a survey that allowed attendees to recommend sites. We continue to solicit input, and readers can recommend potential sites by completing our brief survey below.
Utah is a geologic wonderland. Its diverse landscapes with outstanding rocky outcrops make Utah a treasure trove of prospective geoheritage sites. As you might guess, our all-inclusive list is long, having 734 locations and counting! However, we have begun to create a shorter and more tenable list. This process began by deleting redundancies (e.g., Thistle Landslide is featured in a UGS “GeoSight” article and is also on the UGA road sign list) and any entries that did not qualify based on the ranking attributes described below. The current shortlist contains 128 sites and includes a wide array of geologic and geomorphic feature types, such as canyons, water features, pinnacles, volcanic features, mines, mineral collecting areas, geothermal sites, cultural features, and many others.
All potential sites in our dataset include: name, brief description, latitude and longitude coordinates, basic lithology, geologic age, land ownership, and additional notes. For the current shortlist, we are assigning a 1 to 5 rank for the following attributes: scientific, educational, cultural, economic, and aesthetic value. Sites are also being assigned a low, medium, or high value for threat of significant alteration or destruction, social significance, and proximity to other sites. For example, the attributes and scoring for the Bonneville Salt Flats made it one of our top 5 ranked sites thus far.
The Bonneville Salt Flats, the largest salt flats in North America, has been the setting for land speed records and numerous Hollywood films, television shows, and commercials.
Location map of geoheritage sites.
The Bonneville Salt Flats, the largest salt flats in North America, has been the setting for land speed records and numerous Hollywood films, television shows, and commercials. The salt flats have also been declining and are at risk of further deterioration. For more information see https://doi.org/10.34191/PI-106 or https://geology.utah.gov/bsf-research.
Potential geoheritage sites are distributed across the state and Utah’s three physiographic provinces. Surprisingly, thus far we have fewer sites in the Rocky Mountains than the Basin and Range, with the Rocky Mountains having 10 of the sites on our list, Basin and Range having 51, and Colorado Plateau having 67. This distribution may be attributed to the relative geographic expanse of each province. Within Utah, the Basin and Range is much larger than the Rocky Mountains. However, there are many amazing outcrops and features in the Wasatch Range and Uinta Mountains that may have been missed.
Potential geoheritage sites are located on federal, state, tribal, county, city, and non-profit owned lands. Some sites have multiple landowners. Any potential sites on tribal or private lands will need owner approval before listing or assigning any future designation.
Pie chart showing percentage of potential geoheritage sites located on federal, state, tribal, county, city, and non-profit owned lands.
The UGS is not the only organization that has considered Utah sites worthy of geoheritage designation. The International Union of Geological Sciences’ extensive list of world Geological Heritage Sites includes three in Utah: Great Salt Lake, the Henry Mountains, and The Carnegie Quarry Exhibit Hall, situated in Dinosaur National Monument. For more information on these sites visit https://iugs-geoheritage.org/.
This project is a work in progress. We look forward to receiving additional site recommendations from the public, completing our list and rankings, and posting our data and conclusions on the UGS website by the end of 2025.
