5A: Great Salt Lake Strike Team expert collaboration

Anna McEntire | Chapter Five: Great Salt Lake

TAKEAWAY

A new collaborative team is providing urgent research support and synthesis to inform Utah’s strategies to improve watershed management and increase water levels of the Great Salt Lake.

Although the total water in those watersheds is not declining, the amount of water reaching the lake is.

In August 2022, Utah State University, the University of Utah, and the Utah Department of Natural Resources convened a “Great Salt Lake Strike Team,” a model partnership to provide timely, high quality, and relevant data and research to help decision-makers make informed decisions about Great Salt Lake. The 20-person team is designed to serve as a primary point of contact for decision-makers to tap into the expertise of Utah’s research universities.

Over fall 2022, the team developed several key insights and deliverables critical to understanding the lake. Figure 5A.1 shows the current level of Great Salt Lake in context with long-term trends. After a peak in 1987, there is clear downward trend in lake elevation. Nearly half of available water for the Great Salt Lake originates in the Bear River Basin, with the Jordan River, Weber River, and West Desert providing the balance. Although the total water in those watersheds is not declining, the amount of water reaching the lake is. In fact, 23 of the past 30 years have resulted in net water loss for Great Salt Lake.

Figure 5A.2 shows that total human water depletions have been variable in the past 30 years, but the trend suggests water use has remained relatively constant, with agriculture being the largest user of water. In Figure 5A.3 and 5A.4 of northern Utah temperature and precipitation trends, there is a clear upward trend of air temperature over the past 40 years, but no consistent trend in precipitation.

The team shared these findings at the fall Great Salt Lake Summit, hosted by Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson. In January, the team will additionally share calculations on how much water Great Salt Lake will need to stabilize or to increase elevation, as well as an expert policy assessment on key efforts being considered to bring more water to the lake.

Line graph of the elevation in feet of the Great Salt Lake from 1903 to 2022. Vertical axis values range from 4,190 feet to 4,215 feet. Line values vary, with relative highs in the 1920s at about 4,204 feet, in the 1950s at about 4,200 feet, and in the 1980s at almost 4,211 feet. The graph shows a general downward trend beginning at the high in the 1980s and ending in 2020 at about 4,191 feet, the lowest elevation recorded on the graph.
Line graph of human water depletion in thousands of acre feet across the following categories: agriculture, reservoir, managed wetlands, and municipal and industrial. Vertical axis values range from 0 acre feet to 1,800 thousand acre feet and values are collected for the years 1989 to 2018. Lines represent each of the for depletion categories and indicate that agriculture consistently uses the most water, averaging about 1,400 thousand acre feet per year. Reservoirs deplete an average of about 550 thousand acre feet per year, municipal and industrial depletes a near-constant 350 thousand acre feet, and managed wetlands deplete an average of about 150 thousand acre feet.
Line graph of mean northern Utah temperature in degrees Fahrenheit over the years of 1900 to 2020. Vertical axis values range from 35 degrees to 50 degrees. The graph shows varying temperatures with a no-change trend until 1980. In 1980 a slight increasing trend begins and continues through 2020. The graph begins at about 41 degrees in 1900 and ends at about 45 degrees in 2020.
Line graph of mean northern Utah precipitation in inches over the years of 1903 to 2022. Vertical axis values range from 20 inches to 60 inches. The graph shows relatively large variations year to year ranging from 20 inches to 55 inches, with an average of around 33 inches across the years sampled and no discernable trend.