What began as discussion regarding the validity of the Utah Lake Restoration Project may move from the court of public opinion to the court of law.

Lake Restoration Solutions, LLC filed a complaint in the Third Judicial District Court in Salt Lake County on Jan. 10 against Benjamin Abbott. Abbott is an ecologist and assistant plant and wildlife sciences professor at Brigham Young University, who has been outspoken in his opposition to the Utah Lake Restoration Project.

Lake Restoration Solutions owns the Utah Lake Restoration Project, which is a proposal to dredge Utah Lake in order to create islands, which the company claims will help to clean the lake and restore its natural wildlife and vegetation.

The company is suing Abbott for $3 million, claiming defamation, false light, and intentional interference with prospective economic relations.

Abbott has studied Utah Lake since 2018, and has worked with local conservation groups to advocate for the health and wellbeing of the lake. He was one of over a hundred scientists, engineers, natural resource managers, recreation managers and environmental lawyers who signed an open letter speaking out against the Utah Lake Restoration Project, dated Dec. 24.

Abbott has made posts on his personal social media accounts as well as personal blog referencing the Utah Lake Restoration Project, which were cited in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit stated that Abbott claimed the Utah Lake Restoration Project has “has shady foreign funding” that “comes from Dubai” which, according to the company, is untrue. Representatives from Lake Restoration Solutions have previously asserted that the project has received funding from a private local investor who wished to remain anonymous.

Additionally, the lawsuit stated that Abbott claimed, “no researchers are willing” to work for Lake Restoration Solutions, and that “no one in the research or management communities thinks [the Project] is a good idea.” Lake Restoration Solutions similarly claims this is untrue. The company has contracted Geosyntec Consultants, an engineering and consulting firm that works with private and public sector clients around the world, to conduct research on its behalf.

According to the lawsuit, these and other statements made by Abbott have damaged Lake Restorations Solutions’ relations with prospective investors.

Abbott told the Daily Herald that he does not have a comment on the lawsuit at this time.

The following statement was issued by Lake Restoration Solutions:

“The Utah Lake Restoration Project is at the very beginning of a lengthy environmental review process that demands the best available science be utilized, and that both data and opinion be considered from all perspectives. We welcome legitimate scrutiny of our proposal and will, through the federal NEPA process, be required to answer legitimate concerns and critiques. What we cannot tolerate, and the law does not allow, is deliberate mischaracterizations and defamatory statements. Such statements have been and will be referred to outside legal counsel.”

According to Jon Benson, president and COO of Lake Restoration Solutions, hundreds of pages of data supporting the Utah Lake Restoration Project as well as cited sources were included in the project’s NEPA application, however, this information is not available to the public.

Benson has stated that once the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has deemed the Utah Lake Restoration Project’s NEPA application complete, the full application will be released to the public.

The lawsuit stated that Lake Restoration Solutions will donate any damages recovered to one or more 501(c)(3) nonprofits that are “committed to water conservation and environmental stability.”

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