Stopping tourism, freezing development not the answer to southern Utah’s water woes, panelists warn

St. George • Turning away tourists and stopping all further growth and development will not shore up Washington County’s dwindling water supply. That’s a major takeaway from the PBS Utah’s Washington County Climate Conversation event Thursday at Utah Tech University. “We literally have an industry that produces thousands of jobs,” Doug Bennett, conservation manager for the Washington County Water Conservancy District, said about tourism. “We have a $9.5 billion economy in Washington County, and a huge part of that comes from the visitors that come here … and open their...