All your questions about the shrinking Great Salt Lake, answered (by a brine shrimp!)
The Great Salt Lake is in trouble.
Like a lot of things in the 80s, the iconic landmark was at a historic high. Over the last 36 years though, the West’s megadrought, a changing climate and water diversions have taken their toll. In 2022, the terminal lake hit a new low as the rivers that feed it increasingly serve Utah’s burgeoning population.
The dire state of Great Salt Lake hasn’t gone unnoticed. Utah’s lawmakers are trying to act, as are the state’s federal representatives. In the meantime, residents in Salt Lake City and all along the Wasatch Front are beginning to worry about the potential for toxic dust.
All in all, there are a lot more questions than there are answers right now. Especially about how we got into this situation. Owing a lot to the questions you’ve submitted to the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, here’s what a brine shrimp is able to tell us about how we got here.
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Great Salt Lake: Before and today
Listen to part 2 of the audio Q&A
This story was reported and written by McCaulee Blackburn of Salt Lake Community College’s Amplify Utah and originally published by the Great Salt Lake Collective. KUER’s Rakel Davis provided the illustrations and the digital presentation was the work of Jim Hill. Elaine Clark provided editing support for both the audio and digital versions.
Rakel is an illustrator and digital producer in the KUER newsroom.
Jim is an editor and digital content manager in the KUER newsroom.
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