The Jordan River, located in the state of Utah in the western United States, is the outlet of Utah Lake and one of three major tributaries to Great Salt Lake. It begins at the north end of Utah Lake where a pumping station has been created to regulate its flow, then continues north through Utah and Salt Lake Counties into the southeast portion of Great Salt Lake. The river is impounded and diverted in many places, and has been heavily polluted in the past (there are several superfund sites along the river banks), but in recent years there has been an effort to clean up the river.

The original name for the river was the Utah outlet or Utah River, but in 1847 it was renamed at the suggestion of Heber C. Kimball to the Western Jordan after the Jordan River in the Holy Land, due to similarities such as a freshwater lake source and an inland salt-sea destination. Later the "western" was dropped from the name, leaving the current name.

The river continues to be a source of unusual findings such as nonnative tortoises and piranhasPiranha Seized and Killed. KSL.com.

See also

• List of Utah rivers

Notes

References

• Morgan, Dale L. (1947). The Great Salt Lake. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. ISBN 0874804787
• Utah History Encyclopedia: West Jordan
• Utah History Encyclopedia: Jordan River
• Jordan River Wetlands
• Jordan River Restoration Project - U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
• Jordan River Parkway | Utah.com
• Utah Department of Environmental Quality
• Community Fishing Program, Utah DWR

Great Basin | Rivers of Utah

Jordan River (Utah) | Jordan, Utah (flod)