The Valley is surrounded in every direction except the northwest by steep mountains that at some points rise from the valley floor's base elevation. It lies nearly encircled by the Wasatch Mountains on the east, the Oquirrh Mountains on the west, Traverse Ridge to the south and the Great Salt Lake on the northwest, with the peaks of Antelope Island visible. Every entrance into the valley is extremely narrow and often congested. They include the Point of the Mountain to the south via the Jordan Narrows, a gap in the Traverse Mountains, narrow entrances between the Great Salt Lake and Oquirrh Mountains to the northwest and the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Mountains to the north, and several canyons to the east including Parley's Canyon and Emigration Canyon. Flowing from Utah Lake in Utah Valley in the south, the Jordan River runs north through a gap in the Traverse Mountains, bisecting the Valley before emptying into the Great Salt Lake. The Jordan River, along with numerous mountain streams and reservoirs, provides irrigation water to the rapidly growing Valley. The geography of the Salt Lake Valley combined with the prevalence of fossil fuel burning vehicles leads to poor air quality in Utah.
Development
The only areas that have not been urbanized in Salt Lake Valley are near the Great Salt Lake and in the far west and mid-southwest parts of the Valley, although even those areas are beginning to experience the effects of the Salt Lake City urban area's rapid expansion. This southwestern expansion is typified and will be facilitated by the Mountain View Corridor. Some experts are claiming that the Valley will be urbanized rim-to-rim within the next 50 years. A company known as Kennecott Land, which owns the eastern foothills of the Oquirrhs in the western part of the valley, recently drafted a plan that would develop the rest of the entire valley within 75 years, adding at least 500,000 residents. The first development, known as the Daybreak Community, has substantial portions already completed but continues construction. It will focus on transit-oriented development. The Interstate 215 belt route, State Route 154, State Route 201, and State Route 85 are also major transportation routes. The Utah Transit Authority operates an extensive bus system across the Wasatch Front, including the Salt Lake Valley, in addition to three light rail lines in the Valley. A commuter rail line known as FrontRunner runs north to Pleasant View in Weber County and south to Provo in Utah County.
