Peter Gessel, Of Counsel

Peter joined Smith Hartvigsen as of counsel in 2021. Previously, he worked as a water policy advisor for the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food where he actively participated in legislative drafting groups and advocated for agriculture-friendly water legislation with the governor’s office, the legislature, and fellow federal and state agencies. During his twenty years in Utah’s water community he has also worked for the Utah Division of Water Quality in their discharge permitting program and served as a county board member and water policy committee member with the Utah Farm Bureau. He started his legal career with Waddingham & Peterson in Delta, Utah. Peter has assisted agencies, irrigation companies, family farms, water conservancy districts, conservation groups, government agencies, and others in practice areas such as water rights, water quality, renewable energy, public policy, and governmental relations, and has had a significant hand in several recent water bills. He was named as one of Utah Business Magazine’s Legal Elite in Energy and Natural Resources Law in 2021.