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SALT LAKE CITY — Talk about government waste. Literally, waste in this case.
Visits to public lands in Utah have doubled in the past two years. And it only follows that visits to Bureau of Land Management restrooms before, during or after a hike or mountain bike ride have gone up too.
In the Moab area, the BLM pumped more than 177,000 gallons of septic tank sewage left behind by its more than 3 million annual visitors, according to the agency's Moab field office.
The BLM spent $130,000 on dumpster operations, $175,000 on toilet pumping and $16,000 on 25,000 rolls of toilet paper. That's roughly 64 cents per roll.
"That's a lot of toilet paper! Visits to your #publiclands in Utah have doubled over the last 20 years. The BLM strives to ensure your visit is enjoyable, with constant improvements to recreation infrastructure," the agency posted Thursday on the social platform X.
In all, visits to BLM land in Utah reached more than 11 million.
BLM Utah didn't just waste its tweet on waste.
It also highlighted other statistics from the Moab field office, which covers 1.8 million acres in scenic Canyon Country carved out by the Colorado and Green rivers that include a variety of arches, natural bridges, mesas and spires. The area is a recreation mecca for off-highway vehicles, mountain biking, climbing, base jumping, hiking, horseback riding and river rafting.
BLM campsites can accommodate more than 10,000 people a night, and the campsites are full most nights in the spring and fall, according to the field office.
In 2023, the office improved seven campgrounds; built two new campsites; installed five new bike maintenance stands; completed three accessibility improvement projects; improved seven trailheads and boat ramps, and built six steel kiosks and 10 steel shade shelters.
