Recent years have brought my attention to Great Salt Lake. Being a kid, I had no idea how diverse this region was and, as I’m entering my mid-teenage years, it’s absolutely beyond me how unique and special this place truly is.
Watching the calm waters of this saline sea from Interstate 80 has always caught my eye, and I only noticed that changing a couple of years ago.
In 2021, I began reading headlines of Utah’s famous natural wonder quickly disappearing. I was only 14 at the time, but I began to research the true scale of importance and beauty this lake was to the region. In as little as a month, I had learned a lot about Great Salt Lake and the magnitude of its importance in northern Utah.
Moving into 2022, I was disappointed by how little action was being taken to protect and preserve such a massive body of water. I wanted to do something about it, but I was — and still am — just a kid trying to get by in high school. I thought I had to deal with Great Salt Lake being gone forever.
That mindset of mine has changed, however.
Going into the late summer and fall of last year, I along with everybody else in the Great Basin, noticed an extreme shift in weather patterns. Record snowfall that hasn’t been seen in decades swelled our mountains during the winter and endless days of rain followed in the spring.
Great Salt Lake rose more than five feet as a result, and all of Utah’s water woes were over. So that means the Great Salt Lake is saved, right?
Wrong.
One record water year will not save such a fragile body of water. If anything, the lake is expected to drop to new record lows over the next few years if nothing is done to preserve our precious water resources.
Being 16 today, the only thing I can think of is what everyday life was like for citizens in northern Utah when Great Salt Lake was at its peak. I can only imagine eroded highways, inundated wetlands and residents praying for drought as their shallow sea inches closer to civilization.
That could be pretty hard to imagine today, but why should we imagine something that used to be so great? Younger generations will never get to see how magnificent Great Salt Lake truly was. Many — including myself — will never get to see the full potential of what was once something so great. It’s devastating to think about why it might have to be that way.
Silly actions taken over the course of decades has resulted in something so unique to be nearly wiped out from the face of the Earth. This has resulted in worsening air quality, scarce water supply and the destruction of wildlife and human lives, too.
Just remember this was not an issue for many years. But it has become one as a result of greed and exploitation, and it will never change unless something is done about it.
For as long as I can remember, Great Salt Lake has held a special place in my heart. I can remember gazing at the bright orange sky over the calm mirror-like waters and can only imagine how spoiled we are to have such an incredible environment surrounding them. It hurts me to this day that I and many others may never see or experience life with a greater Salt Lake.
Adrian Sandoval
Adrian Sandoval is a junior attending high school in Elko, Nevada. Visiting Utah often, he grew his obsession with the Great Salt Lake and its unique environment. Adrian loves to work with art, go on hikes, be around his family and hopes to do something big in the future with his passion for the environment.