Birds 'n Bites -- "On the Recent Discovery of the Ancient Artesian Groundwater Below Great Salt Lake" with Bill Johnson, PhD
Description
On the Recent Discovery of the Ancient Artesian Groundwater Below Great Salt Lake - Bill Johnson, PhD, Professor in the Department of Geology & Geophysics at the University of Utah
Location: Chase Mill in Tracy Aviary
*Please note, you will need to go inside the Aviary to access the Chase Mill
This presentation discusses the possibilities and constraints of the recently discovered groundwater below Great Salt Lake. When looking at the eastern margin of Great Salt Lake from space, one sees curious circular features approximately 10 to 100 meters across that dot the playa where the brine has receded. The so-called mystery islands/phragmites oases/round spots turn out to be windows into an ancient pressurized fresh mountain-derived groundwater system. This 'Great Salt Lake Aquifer' is a resource that bears consideration in terms of its role in maintaining wetlands peripheral to Great Salt Lake and its potential role in mitigating dust “hot spots” on the exposed playa.
This presentation will include short updates from the Legislative session with Dan Strauch, Great Salt Lake Audubon policy advocate.