This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The state's School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration and the Department of Natural Resources have finalized an agreement that will continue to allow public access to SITLA's 3.2 million acres in Utah, while providing fair compensation to the state's school children and other beneficiaries.
Terms of the 10-year agreement were not disclosed, but the deal will allow continued hunting, fishing, hiking and other forms of outdoor recreation on state trust lands, which are scattered throughout Utah.
"We have an accord that serves two worthy purposes - public access to premium hunting and recreational lands and fair compensation to the owners of those lands," SITLA Director Kevin Carter said in a statement.
SITLA will continue to have regulatory oversight of lands affected by the agreement, and still will be able to sell or lease the parcels. But the Department of Natural Resources will be compensated if such transactions occur.
- Joe Baird
