The Great Salt Dustbowl: the Impacts of a Drying Ecosystem

The Salt Lake Valley faces a dire environmental situation: the drying of the Great Salt Lake (GSL). As state and local water authorities push forward with plans to further dam and divert the single largest input to the GSL, it is crucial to acknowledge the implications of a drying lake bed for the Wasatch Front. As the GSL is not just one ecosystem within the Salt Lake Valley-but in fact the ecosystem of the valley, the impacts of a drained lake bed lying fallow to the elements brings about images of severe dust storms polluting Salt Lake's skies. This change is not an unnatural one, in fact it is caused by well-known forces: urban and agricultural development. This paper finds that nature is based in the status quo- not what ought to be. Ecosystems are incredibly intricate and interconnected entities that the human scape actively moves and shapes. It is important to remember this connectivity in urban planning and policy because our actions do more than impact our way of life, they reshape the world around us.