Editor's note: This list of potential solutions was made for students who are learning about the Great Salt Lake through a partnership the Great Salt Lake Collaborative has with Spy Hop, a nonprofit digital media arts center in Salt Lake City. Students wanted to know about steps that everyday Utahns can take to help the lake. The list was created based on articles produced by the Great Salt Lake Collaborative. Links to relevant stories are included.
1. Conserve water by replacing your lawn and learning how to efficiently water outdoors. Encourage businesses and institutions (schools, churches, etc) to remove grass they don’t use.
- Further reading:
2. Talk to your Utah lawmakers about the lake. Some policy changes that scientists and advocates suggest include:
- Committing conserved water saved at homes and farms to the lake.
- Monitoring Great Salt Lake dust so we know if there are more dust storms and if they’re causing health problems.
- Changing how people pay for water so that they would use less.
- Reducing the amount of untreated water (called secondary water) that is used to water lawns and gardens. A lot of this water is unmetered, meaning homeowners don’t know how much water they’re using. Adding meters to these systems have proven to reduce water use. Increasing the price of this water could also reduce water use.
- Further reading:
4. Stop/cut back on eating meat and dairy.
5. Donate to the Great Salt Lake Watershed Enhancement Trust, the entity set up by the state to acquire water donations for the Great Salt Lake.
- Further reading:
