SHRINKING GREAT SALT LAKE AND

SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT

Nathaniel Curtis
SHRINKING
GSL

“In July 2021,

the southern portion
of the Great Salt
Lake reached a new
historic low”
– USGS Utah Water Science
Center

USGS. (2021).
SHRINKING
GSL
- 20-foot
decline from
1987 - 2016

- Average of
4198.1 ft

- Below
average for
18 years

USGS. (2021)
 LAKE
EFFECT
SNOW

US Department of
Commerce (2020)
 Less Water
in GSL

Less Spring Less Lake

Runoff Effect Snow

Lower
Snowpack
THESIS:

If the Elevation of the Great Salt Lake decreases, then the

amount of annual snow fall in the Cottonwood Canyons
will decrease.
COTTONWOOD
CANYONS

- Snowbird: 9177 ft

- Brighton: 8766 ft

Picture captured
from Apple Maps
SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT

NRCS. (n.d.)
PEAK SWE
- Peak
Measured in
spring

- Snowbird higher
peaks due to
elevation

USGS. (2021)
BRIGHTON
- Only slight
decline

- Slope of
decline is -
0.093 in/year

USGS. (2021)
SNOWBIRD

-Only slight
decline

-Slope of
decline is
-0.042 in/year

USGS. (2021)
 GSL AND
BRIGHTON

- Hard to see any

trends

- Not conclusive

USGS. (2021)
BRIGHTON
-Horizontal Line:
Average SWE
(25.4 in)

-Vertical Line:
No Change in
Elevation

-80% of data
points fall into
pattern

USGS. (2021)
SNOWBIRD
-Horizontal Line:
Average SWE
(45.6 in)

-Vertical Line:
No Change in
Elevation

-74% of data
points fall into
pattern

USGS. (2021)
CONCLUSION
• No obvious connection between Elevation and SWE

• Strong connection with change in elevation and SWE

• Cause and Effect is not clear

IMPLICATIONS

Ecology: Tourism:

• 2 to 5 million birds • $10 Billion in 2019

(Carter Williams, 2020)
annually
(Utah.edu, n.d.)
• Est. 141,500 Jobs
(Carter Williams, 2020)
• 550 to 700 bison
(Utah.gov, n.d.)
• $1.34 billion in tax
• 400+ wildlife species. revenue
(Utah.gov, n.d.) (Carter Williams, 2020)
SOURCES
• US Department of Commerce, N. O. A. A. (2020, August 14). Social Media: Winter weather. National Weather
Service. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://www.weather.gov/wrn/fall2020-winter-sm.
• USGS. (2021). Great Salt Lake Elevations. Great salt lake elevations. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from
https://www.usgs.gov/centers/ut-water/science/great-salt-lake-elevations.
• NRCS. (n.d.). Snow Survey Infographics. NRCS. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from
https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/water/?cid=stelprdb1046652.
• USGS. (2021, December 7). USGS Surface-Water Annual Statistics for Utah. waterdata.usgs.gov. Retrieved
December 7, 2021.
• USDA. (2021, December 7). Retrieved December 7, 2021, from
https://wcc.sc.egov.usda.gov/nwcc/site?sitenum=366.
• USDA. (2021, December 7). Retrieved December 7, 2021, from
https://wcc.sc.egov.usda.gov/nwcc/site?sitenum=766.
• Utah.edu. (n.d.). Birds. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from
https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/gsl/foodweb/birds/.
• Carter Williams, K. S. L. (2020, September 28). Tourism brought Utah $10B in 2019, but how will the industry recover
post-covid-19? KSL.com. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://www.ksl.com/article/50021651/tourism-
brought-utah-10b-in-2019-but-how-will-the-industry-recover-post-covid-19.
• Utah.gov. (n.d.). Great Salt Lake Ecosystem Program. Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. Retrieved December 8,
2021, from https://wildlife.utah.gov/gslep.html.