Picture a Utah with nearly 7 million residents, crowded schools and mind-numbing traffic jams. It's not too hard to see from here for most Utahns, who rate population growth and its attendant headaches a Top-10 issue. The Utah Foundation released a research brief Thursday based on a January survey bu Dan Jones and Associates in which 52 percent of respondents said the state is growing too quickly. The 2.6 million who live here now will see their numbers swell to 6.8 million or beyond by 2060, the foundation projects.

Think it's crowded now?

Utah is a growth leader that shows no signs of slowing. The population is expected to eclipse 4.5 million in about two decades, a little smaller than present-day Colorado but bigger than today's Oregon. By 2060, it could reach 6.84 million - bigger than either Arizona or Washington state today. Among other challenges, that surge will put a squeeze on Utah's water supply, one of four growth-related issues that Utahns graded 4 or higher as a concern on a 1-to-5 scale. (The other three were traffic, school crowding and crime.)

Between a Lake Powell pipeline in the south and a Bear River diversion in the north, the state's water-development tab will exceed $1 billion in coming decades, according the Utah Foundation. Southern Utah could experience acute water shortages as early as 2012, thanks largely to growth around St. George. Construction of a pipeline isn't expected to start until 2015.

bloomis@sltrib.com