Is tilapia legal in Utah?
The short answer, the rule it comes from, and what to raise instead if you want fish in an unheated backyard system.
Short answer: No, owning tilapia (the most popular fish species for aquaponics) is illegal in Utah unless you get a certificate of registration.
What the rule actually says
TODO: finish this page, write more articles, finish looking at the # REVIEW comments to clean out the AI slop See https://wildlife.utah.gov/cip/tables
Why the answer surprises people
[The gap between what the national forums say and what's true here.]
The practical problem, separately from the legal one
Even where tilapia are permitted, Utah's climate makes them expensive. They stop feeding in the low 60s and start dying in the mid 50s, which means heating a tank from October through May at 4,300 feet.
Tilapia comfort: 75–85 °F · Feeding stops: below ~62 °F · Mortality: below ~55 °F
[Add your own numbers here: what your unheated water actually did last January, and what heating it would have cost.]
What to raise instead
[Goldfish and koi as ornamental stock, plus whatever else you can support. Explain the ornamental-versus-aquaculture distinction briefly and link to the longer article.]
Stuck on this in your own system?
A 30-60 minutes remote consult is $50. You describe the system, I tell you what to change, and you get a written summary the same day.
Book a consultSources
- [UDAF page — link and date accessed]
- [DWR page — link and date accessed]
- [Rule text — link and date accessed]