Why this Lake is a Ticking Nuclear Time Bomb | Disappearing Great Salt Lake | Earth Explained!

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🌍 Watch our entire Earth Explained! series: ▶️ • Earth Explained
One of the USA’s largest lakes is disappearing. Water levels in Utah’s Great Salt Lake have dropped by 6 meters since 1985, and last summer reached their lowest point ever. Not only does this threaten the local ecosystem, but hazardous metals in the exposed lakebed are also putting human lives at risk. Why is such a vast body of water drying up? And where else in the world is this happening? Producer Philip dives into urban water consumption and the hydrological cycle to find out: Can lessons from history help to save the Great Salt Lake? Stay tuned for more stories about pressing environmental issues. And don’t forget to like and subscribe to make sure you never miss an episode!
Chapters:
00:00 Drought news around the world
01:13 Thank you, Brilliant!
02:13 Austria: Neusiedlersee is drying up
03:31 Terminal lakes: what are they?
04:10 Great Salt Lake current situation
05:39 Owens Lake: historic text book case
06:40 How to fix the problem
07:41 Lake effect snow
08:34 Water prices
09:18 Economic prosperity vs. natural depletion
🔗 Sources:
(1) Al Jazeera English: How should we adapt to climate change? | Inside Story - • How should we adapt to...
(2) BBC News: France experiencing worst drought on record - BBC News - • France experiencing wo...
(3) DW News: Russia's invasion of Ukraine. War has returned to Europe: • Russia's invasion of U...
(3) Terra Mater - How the China-Russia Conflict Shaped the Asian Wilderness • How the China-Russia C...
(4) Terra Mater - How China Can Prevent Future Floods • How China's Flood-Proo...
(5) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Owens Lake, California - • Google Timelapse: Owen...
(6) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Lake Urmia, Iran - • Google Timelapse: Lake...
(7) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Poopo Lake, Bolivia - • Google Timelapse: Poop...
(8) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Aral Sea - • Google Timelapse: Aral...
(9) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Great Salt Lake, Utah - • Google Timelapse: Grea...
(10) Bundesamt für Eich- und Vermessungswesen: Habsburgermonarchie (1869-1887) - Franzisco-Josephinische Landesaufnahme -
maps.arcanum.com/de/map/third...
(11) NASA Earth Observatory: The Great Shrinking Lake - earthobservatory.nasa.gov/ima...
(12) Sacramento Bee: Dust storms at Owens Lake - • Dust storms at Owens Lake
(13) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Owens Lake, California - • Google Timelapse: Owen...
(14) Los Angeles Department of Water and Power: Los Angeles Aqueduct Centennial 2013 - • Los Angeles Aqueduct C...
(15) Dust Clouds - Sacramento Bee: Dust storms at Owens Lake - • Dust storms at Owens Lake
(16) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Kennecott Copper Mine, Salt Lake City, Utah yMd-jLmAuHs
(17) Google Earth - Google Timelapse: Great Salt Lake, Utah - • Google Timelapse: Grea...
(18) Statista: Average monthly water prices in the United States as of July 2022 - www.statista.com/statistics/1...
#earthexplained

[@terramater]

Visit brilliant.org/TerraMater/ to get started learning STEM for free, and the first 200 people will get 20% off their annual premium subscription!

[@sailingaeolus]

Ah, the GSL at about 40% of full pool land area. And the world hasn't ended yet.

[@aaronandrews3059]

There is much truth in this video. As a landscape architect in Salt Lake City, it's been nearly impossible to convince people to loose their lawns. It's ingrained in their minds that lush green lawns are a status symbol. Id rather have water to drink and grown food than grass.

[@carmensmithaguirre3049]

I was just thinking about this. You would think that promoting a xerophytic landscape, for example, as the much greener option would be an even bigger status symbol.

[@cchavezjr7]

it's not just status. It's a place for kids to play as well.

[@Jake-zk3eb]

The government just had to raise water prices.

[@chexmix0101]

@@cchavezjr7 and get some of that nice toxic dust particles!

[@cchavezjr7]

@@chexmix0101 not just SLC but yards are pretty universal across the country and maybe not everyone needs it but I love having a place for my daughter to run around and tumble and play games with her.

[@Jaws10214]

@KZbin, wtf. fix your algorithm and get TerraMatter in front of more peoples eyes!

[@terramater]

Hi!! Thanks for the support! Let's spread the word about it 🙌

[@stephenrodgers9698]

I moved to Utah in 2019 and SLC in 2021. There is so much to love about this place and I'm heartbroken that nobody seems to care about this issue. The great salt lake is one of the most beautiful places I've ever been and is so crucial to our environment.. yet I know many people who lived here for decades who have never even been to the lake. It's 20 minutes away from downtown...

[@kellythomas90]

Steven Roger's It's u ppl moving to s. L. C. Their using it 4 that. Too many damn ppl moving here & thats a proven fact !!!!!!

[@sunnydaze1]

That toxic lake dust will wake Utahns up. Maybe. The nasty Inversions are an accepted part of life in Northern Utah. I wouldn't step foot in Utah. The people are willfully blind to their polluted environment and its gonna get worse soon too. Good luck. My elderly mom was taken to Logan, Utah, where she'd never lived, from the East Coast. She died in 1.5 years from the nasty pollution. I'd move soon if I were you. RIP Mom

[@kellythomas90]

@@sunnydaze1 there's not much left Their using it 4 the ppl that moving here. That's a shame !!! When I was a kid we floated in it, it was huge !! There was a Hugh dance place & famous ppl would come to entertain , also was one of the 1st roller-coaster. We rode it & it would make alot of noise, it was made of wood. The state 🔥 burned down the dance hall & roller-coaster. What a shame. I was told by somebody that they would have a train from Salt Lake city to Salt Air. This was in the 30s.

[@kellythomas90]

@@sunnydaze1 it's not inversion it's FOG !!!! When I was a kid it would be all smog, from U. S. STEEL in provo. They stopped Using it & the smog went away.

[@kwamestanciel2513]

It’s human nature. They won’t care. Especially if they’re in a particular age range, they may be under the assumption that things should go on as they were and that their own futures can grow and be protected. This is not the case. Unfortunately history has shown that this type of preaching has to be done, but ultimately many will reap what they sow (misunderstanding).

[@blunzengrostl5899]

Cool that you are trying something new! I like seeing real faces do the explaining.

[@terramater]

Hi Blunzengröstl! Thanks for the feedback and for watching! 🙌

[@blunzengrostl5899]

@@terramater You are welcome! I watch every last of them :)

[@tannerburton5966]

Utah broke the all time record for snowpack this year. So far the lake is up 2 feet.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

I think it's closer to 5 or 6 feet now a month after your post.

[@swilsonmc2]

Sounds good. Panic's over.

[@terramater]

That really sounds good - but you still gotta see the bigger picture - that is what we are trying to portrait here ;)

[@MAX-uu1mq]

Awesome video, great format! We want more of that!! 💯🔥

[@terramater]

Hi Max! Thanks for the feedback!! 🙌

[@philipalcazar]

Hey friends! As you can see, we’re trying a new approach here at terra mater, showing our faces a bit more and making our videos more personal. We hope you like it! Stay tuned for many more stories to come: kzbin.info

[@GiacomoCarali]

Hi, you did a very good presentation and your name sounds like a magician or something, haha

[@rustix3]

And now let's talk about elephant in the room: Aral Sea. Around 60 years ago it was the 4th largest lake on Earth, at the same time being a freshwater lake.

[@terramater]

Hey RustiX! We decided to talk about the elephant in the room. Here the video about the Aral Sea kzbin.info/www/bejne/qKHQh3afgM-Zpdk Thanks!

[@LoremIpsum1970]

Great video. I'd be worried about the Salton Sea if I was in California, a manmade sea with an interesting history and a future manmade problem if it dries up. Las Vegas seem to be doing well with their water usage btw.

[@terramater]

You're right! We'll be covering this topic in our next video in fact.

[@raulisrael7342]

@@terramater I live In California near the Salton sea

[@highlymedicated2438]

@@raulisrael7342 OK thank you for that information

[@crashstitches79]

WHAT? Las Vegas has been in a drought for decades. How can you look at Lake Mead and think Vegas is doing fine?

[@LoremIpsum1970]

@@crashstitches79 Re-read the reply as I don't think you understood what was said, then watch RealLifeLore - How Las Vegas Exists in America's Driest Desert...

[@Clickens]

I can relate to this dread. One of the pictures you showed was in the Netherlands, Nijmegen. I walked in places where normally, I would be instantly drowned due to the heavy current. It was a weird and every emotional moment, to see the environmental degradation unfolding in just a short couple of years. The worst part? Nothing. changed. about. our. water. management. after. Still, such a big portion goes to the farming industry. Heck, the Netherlands is a swamp we're draining, to feed cows and pigs to be eaten in China. I know, there is more nuance to that.. But essentially, it boils down to short-term economic gain winning, time and time again, over long-term thinking that would save us billions, save us a healthy environment, save us, period!

[@draphotube4315]

Heb je helemaal gelijk in, en door dat 'draining' komt ons land ook nog is lager te liggen en trekt het zeewater onder de grond naar binnen. We zijn onszelf in het nauw aan het werken. Maar he? Zoals rutte zei., Visie is iets onnodigs...

[@dragoneyr1632]

Kan je een link geven?

[@chexmix0101]

The city is really not conserving water. Right now there’s thousands of single family homes being built with big green lawns and multiple golf courses being built.

[@corporeidad]

In the end ..., that's what it's said in the video.

[@UmbreonLuv1]

I wish we could have more native plants and grasses being grown in our yards. Native plants are better at handling droughts and would require less water to stay green and healthy. Plus it'll be a benefit to local wildlife like bugs, birds, and small animals that might still live in the suburbs or city

[@rgfraunfelder]

Have you lost your mind? Healthy bugs? In your lawn? Salt Lake City is DIEING. From OVERPOPULATION. Too many of you.

[@eeeeggnog._.]

​@rickgarner11 nothing they said was wrong. And while sure growing population has an effect, easily the biggest problem is agriculture

[@jamesferrin5415]

6 months later, Good news: The Great Salt Lake has grown 4' in elevation, with another 2' to 3' expected by the end of run off. That is a big change for this shallow lake. It is not as dire as it seemed last summer coming off of 2 really low precipitation years. FYI, agriculture only uses 32.5% of the water yield and residential returns 50% of their diverted water back to the lake making the system completely different from the Owens watershed. The Great Salt lake rises and falls according to precipitation and evaporation historically. Humans only have a small affect on that outcome, even in dry years. We witnessed a couple years of drought, now we get to witness it grow again.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

That was one long ass drought for sure. Hopefully that sucker is on its last legs or done for a while.

[@sotxjoe3216]

C'mon, man, STOP IT! YOU'RE RUINING THE NARRATIVE!

[@jamesferrin5415]

@@sotxjoe3216 one year later Owens lake filled and flooded, wasting that $2.5 billion L.A. spent on dust mitigation making this comparison irrelevant, besides the fact that Utah never diverted nearly the percentage of water L.A. did. As of today the GSL has a 5.2' higher elevation than it did in Nov. 2022, with 2-3' expected by the end of runoff in June. This will bring the lake into the healthy zone making the arsenic dust study irrelevant also. GSL studies omitted the pumping project and precipitation as a factor in predicting future lake shrinkage in order to collect more tax $allocations for future studies and pet projects. The GSL has been in a state of growth for a year and a half now. Thanks for the look back @sotxjoe3216

[@niloreiawik]

Wonderful video! Thank you so much :)

[@amadoujalloh1932]

Thanks for the update

[@terramater]

Hi, Amadou! We're happy to hear that! Thanks for watching! :)

[@W_Desert_life]

I love how there are so many people moving in from outside of Utah that are telling Utahn's how they think they should live. Don't Californicate my Utah.

[@bensonjarvis5025]

My dad told me that in order for the Great Salt Lake to stay full is for the Utah lake down south to dry up every once in awhile. Now there is water ways that control the water flow from the Utah lake to the Great salt lake. My dad also said that my Great Grandfather walked across the Utah lake when it was dry.

[@MH-Gaijin]

5:25 - 5:32 Ding ding ding, we have a winner. And you guys do love creating them.

[@Faultlinevideos]

Love the new concept and fanatic video Philip and to the whole TMFS team 👏

[@terramater]

Hi Faultline! Great to hear that!! 🙌

[@rahimsvoice]

Water will be the new gold.

[@stanfordsweird4607]

As someone in Salt Lake City you can't escape the bad air quality.... Dust in the summers, wildfires in the fall, and winter inversions in the winter.....

[@stanfordsweird4607]

also watching people pronounce names here is so funny lmao

[@Jane-ur4te]

This is why I left. Another thing I remember is the coroner isn't aloud to put pollution on death certificates and he was extremely frustrated with the goverment there not letting him put the real reasons people are dying.

[@kellythomas90]

I was born here. I dont see Nothing that their talking about air quality. When I was a kid coming to s. L. C. You couldn't see an inch in front of u. There was Geneva steel not far causing all the smog. They stopped using it, now the smog is gone. Dummies

[@jeffspicoli5399]

​@@Jane-ur4te yeah sure buddy. Utah this place in this big huge country with one of the smallest populations in this huge country is killing everyone with pollution huh? Funniest made up BS I've probably ever heard. So California puts all these deaths they have on pollution or New York or the entire east coast for that matter. And gee how many inversions did we have this year? 1 maybe 2 and only lasting a couple days. And that's the nature of this area it has the terrain for that to happen here. But also we sure don't need all these ILLEGAL ALIENS here exacerbating the problem. I didn't ask for all these ILLEGAL Foreigners to come pollute my home. So let's send them all back to their homes and half the people here will be gone like that. Then you won't have all the pollution trapped in the inversions that we get in the winter. And it will be just like I remember it 20 plus years ago. Better then things are now for damn sure

[@shivamss9263]

Thanks for making such content we need more of this

[@terramater]

Hi, Shivam! We're happy to hear that! Thanks for watching! :)

[@saadr1an]

So happy to see you talk about this

[@terramater]

Thanks for the feedback, Adrian!

[@sirnadavid-lalic869]

Heavy topic fantastically presented! Well done! Let´s see more of it!

[@terramater]

Hi, Sirna! We're happy to hear that! Thanks for watching! :)

[@brycekirkham6896]

Excellent video and philip was very engaging throughout! Loved this new format!

[@terramater]

Hi, Bryce! We're happy to hear that! Thanks for watching! :)

[@brycekirkham6896]

@@terramater no problem!

[@aasishwarsaravana5748]

More videos of this format please 🔥

[@terramater]

Will do! 🙌

[@christitaylor2770]

The city leaders need to put a cap on building and say for the next couple years were not building were maintaining....

[@wolfgangknoepfler9801]

Brilliant. Your best one!

[@terramater]

Hi Wolfgang! Great to hear that! 🙌

[@aamirwali5393]

Terra Matter I love all of your videos!

[@terramater]

And we love to hear that! Thanks for watching, Aamir!! :)

[@joshuajones5351]

Keep up the great work

[@terramater]

Hi joshua! Thanks for the feedback!

[@rjung_ch]

People just want to live in places not meant to live in. 2.5 million people use so much water, not many people do the math. It's insane, people are not thinking enough, it's the reason so much harm is done. Living in the desert without being sustainable is the problem.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

Actually no that wasn't our problem at all here for well up to about 2000 ish when we started getting flooded with all these foreigners that most are ending up to be ILLEGAL ALIENS residing in my home since birth 44 years ago. That's the problem. Now let's get these people back to their own homes and then we can talk.

[@uschil228]

Somehow it always makes me happy when my home coutry austria is mentioned in such great viedo content. I live near Lake Neusiedl and it's shocking what is happening to the lake.

[@terramater]

Hi Uschi! Isn't it? :(

[@mariellasoede5599]

This man is so incredibly handsome. Makes it hard to concentrate on the content of the video

[@terramater]

And also so smart 🤓

[@jimmydilley9138]

One of the biggest problems with utah‘s water consumption is that 80% of the water we use actually goes toward agriculture and one of the largest crops is alfalfa which humans don’t even consume.

[@christitaylor2770]

Animals do

[@jamesferrin5415]

80% is a misnomer. 80% of diverted human consumptive water, not of total water yield. Also, 35% of that 80% is returned to flow. Agriculture depletion only averages 32.5% of total water yield per year. We were gaslighted on that figure I found out later.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

No we don't. But the food that we eat consumes it you jackwagon. You can eat bean curds all day long and wash it down with soy crap and play your flute as you please. Don't force your lifestyle on me pal.

[@b.a.d.2086]

I'm a 78 year old native from just north of Salt Lake City and much of my life's work has been in horticulture where it's basic to keep an eye on the environment. My late husband worked for Kennecott Copper for 31 years at the ore concentrators. You're right about what's in the lakebed and there's even more. It was beautiful here before it got paved over, "developed", poisoned by refineries and the mountains turned into giant gravel pits with blowing dust contributing to the mess. Oh, and we have a high background radiation most of the time, possibly caused by the "low level" nuclear waste stored west of the lake. Still want to move here?

[@Jane-ur4te]

Just moved out. I saw it happening and was like why can't anyone else see this mess???

[@terramater]

We're so sorry to hear that :(

[@jeffspicoli5399]

Actually I was born here and have lived here all my 44 years. I definitely don't agree with half the population being illegal aliens from foreign countries. Start there then maybe we can talk

[@josyandras9805]

Great Video!

[@terramater]

Hi, Josy! We're happy to hear that! Thanks for watching! :)

[@mistyriver1839]

Utah had record snowfall since this video was posted and raised the lake. It is no longer at risk of drying up

[@demorbe-official]

Great video. It's really eye opening and warning. As responsible citizens we should do something about this situation before it's too late otherwise by the time we wake up it may be too late

[@terramater]

Hi Demorbe! Thanks for watching! :)

[@worldtsunami9142]

Very educational, thank you for your hard work.

[@terramater]

Thanks for the feedback and for watching it! :)

[@billcow3455]

I xeriscaped my lawn here is SLC about 5 years ago and see a vast increase in others doing the same just in my neighborhood. So hopefully this trend continues. Props to Terra Mater for making this awesome video!

[@terramater]

Hi Bill, thanks for the insight and for watching our video! 🙌

[@Raptorman0909]

Water consumption in the SLC valley is dominated by agriculture as it is pretty much everywhere. On average, agriculture (farming) consumes about 80% of all fresh water and they are terribly wasteful in how they use that water. Modern farming techniques like hydroponics and aeroponics consume less than 10% as much water as traditional farming to produce the same quantity of crops and they do so with little or no pesticides. In summary, if farming were to move to more efficient methods the amount of water needed could be cut in half -- actually by more than half. Farming makes use of very sophisticated equipment but their water usage is centuries old and very wasteful. Flood irrigation is a common method of water the fields but it results in huge loses to evaporation and runoff and the runoff is poisoned with pesticides and fertilizer. If you don't think that's a problem perhaps a visit to the Salton Sea should clear things up for you! The SLC valley could become Bombay Beach or Niland -- maybe Google those places if you are so inclined!

[@uydagcusdgfughfgsfggsifg753]

Great video

[@terramater]

Thanks!

[@lynnrolaf7422]

When will we STOP allowing towns to have lawns? We need nature to create her own green spaces ❣️❣️❣️

[@igorbukovy4313]

Human society is based on economy and we live on a planet which is based on ecology. We have to learn to live in a harmony with nature. Right now money are a driving force to success but also to destruction ad polution. Our society is upside down full of greedy a-holes!

[@Chesemiser]

For now we are still basically forcing homes to have lawns in many cities so even if we want to not have a lawn to save water or what not the HOA or the city will come at you for "bringing down the local housing value"

[@sotxjoe3216]

Private property rights.

[@C.Noble13]

You speak my language Floating at Salt Lake Spiral jetties all my youth. High strangeness

[@davek1833]

Just moved to SLC. Their skies are so dirty in the winter yet they hate EVs. The groundwater and both Utah lake and Great Salt Lake is so polluted from unrestricted mining. BYU study showed 1 - 5 years off my life now from the air. It's so bad you can't see down the street. You can smell and taste it

[@corporeidad]

Preocupante pero ¡Qué buen video!

[@terramater]

Gracias!

[@scottmccauley7555]

Let's talk about how the governor has an alfaalfa farm and refuses to enact any kind of meaningful changes other than giving more price breaks to golf courses...

[@user-eb8gq7py6t]

i grew up in ogden and i always knew this was an issue. there was no flow going into the lake but its weird to see it actually taking effect. I feel like we’ve been in drought status for years. but it’s only after leaving utah that i’ve started following this issue so closely

[@OstlerDev]

The problem in Utah is the growing of alfalfa which is an extremely high intensity water crop. Farmers grow it because they need to use all of their allotted water or their will lose those water rights forever for the portion of water they do not use. This has led to planting higher water intensity crops so that farmers do not lose their water rights. Most of their farms value actually comes from the water rights themselves. Watering lawns in Utah isn’t the issue, it’s agriculture. The worst part is we then send most of the grown alfalfa overseas at a loss… basically just shipping our water away from Utah. It’s so sad. There’s plenty of water here, it’s just being used incorrectly.

[@lokingbob]

I live in salt lake and people here say they care but only with words. Everyone is living there life like everything is okay and if you tell them about the looming problems they care but have zero interest in changing there life style. I was born in utah and with the way we are acting about this subject we probably deserve what's coming.

[@kamekaze8524]

Bruh at least you got the lake, In Arizona my tribe used salt river as a big idol of Arizona now the river has been dry for decades

[@lokingbob]

@@kamekaze8524 dang I'm really sorry to hear that 😔

[@kellythomas90]

Their using it 4 all the damn Ppl moving here. & thats a proven fact. !!!!!!! Dummies

[@Letsmakeithappen2004]

Same man, I just moved to West Valley with my mom and I’m barely hearing about this now. I was born and raised in Utah and it’s terrifying that no one cares and so many peoples lives are at stack because of this issue. The only thing I guess I can do is vote for politicians who care and move out of state.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

​@@Letsmakeithappen2004May I suggest California and don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out. Bye bye Felicia.

[@A.D.D.I.E.]

In the book On the Road, by Jack Kerouac, Salt Lake City is referred to as, "The City of Sprinklers." I read that decades ago and it's always stuck with me when I realized how correct that statement was.

[@kayakMike1000]

Lakes are a temporary feature. There are lots of salt flats out in Utah, remnants of lakes evaporating. Besides, humans are just using up that water.

[@philipalcazar]

so, what's your conclusion? leave the GSL to dry up, use up all the water, and then?

[@jds1275]

The heavy metals are not just from the mining though, that didn't help. The Great Salt Lake is only the last vestiges of a huge lake called Lake Bonneville. The heavy metals have been concentrating in the soil since it started drying up thousands of years ago and concentrating like the salt.

[@philipalcazar]

correct! same with heavy metals beneath Owens Lake.

[@Radiophotographer]

Approximately 30,000 years ago, a volcanic event altered the course of what we now call the Bear River. The Bear River now flowed into the Salt Lake Basin. In 15,000 years time, the climate was cool enough, and wet enough it created Lake Bonneville. What we now know as Salt Lake City was under almost 700 Feet of water. When it reached it's peak, there was an event. Some information says an earthquake. Some information just says the lake found a natural outlet. Whatever the cause, there was a great flood down the snake river valley. after that event, what's now Salt Lake City was still under 400 feet of water. We KNOW the climate changed naturally to a warmer and dryer climate. It it had not, Lake Bonneville would still exist. BUT instead over the next 15,000 years, the lake went from around 500 feet deep, to the 40 foot deep puddle the pioneers found. From the time the Pioneers entered the valley. Great Salt Lake had a modern high somewhere around 4,210 feet about 1875. From there the lake basically, and naturally fell to what was then a modern day low of 4,191 feet in 1962. After that the lake rose again to a new modern high of 4,211 feet in 1987. It might have gone higher, but large pumps were installed to send water onto the salt flats. Then another modern day low of 4,188 feet in 2022. From 30,000 years ago (climate wet enough to make Lake Bonneville) to the 1800 when the lake was just a shadow of itself . . . . was it MAN that caused it or nature?

[@tedtimberson4262]

Nah the I-15 runs next to it and the microclimate change from the emissions sucked the water to Florida as a hurricane. Read the literature bud. Lake Bonneville was invented by Sinclair to justify oil refineries in bountiful.

[@cokebottles6919]

As someone that lives in Salt Lake City let me say... Nah bro, it'll like.. be ok.

[@camilkegels3640]

great video, but wrong CLP icon in the thumbnail

[@Grasshopper.80]

They need to build a pipeline from the ocean.

[@theblackhand6485]

Green lawns in the middle of the desert is a odd thing to see. Beautiful on one side, but oh so strange on the other. The best thing to do is artificial grass. Or better, a garden with plants, trees and rocks that are coming from the natural habitat found in the state. Marram grasses (Ammophila) will do great too.

[@Chesemiser]

Yeah I don't agree with the artificial grass it just wouldn't really work in the area but I fully agree with the local plant life and one of the big things would be stripping down HOA's because in many if not most places in Utah making it so that your option is to keep your green grass or move because so many of them do not permit the lack of lively plant life and are now permitting local plant life but not letting you actually take the steps to having it for your yard because the transition period looks bad

[@MrStevo440]

Good news is they have record snow this year so just maybe the lake can come up..

[@terramater]

Hi Steve! Good to know!

[@jeffspicoli5399]

It has already come back up several feet. With the majority of this year's snow still waiting to melt. Utah received over 75 feet of snow or over 30 inches of water equivalent this winter in most of our mountains. More then we've ever seen in recorded history. More then I've ever seen in my 44 years living here in Utah for sure.

[@therealrvasinger241]

The population has gotten too huge. Utah must immediately adopt a one-child-per-family policy.😀

[@DEmersonJMFM]

Grass and farms don't belong in a desert.

[@Catwoman1464]

3:24 Could you tell me where this was filmed? I would like to see it for myself

[@terramater]

Hi Paskeros! It's called Zicksee in Austria

[@MehHalfhearted]

Heres the problem, here in the US it almost feels like we have a culture of stupidity and ignorance. I guarentee that the majority of people won't do anything about any of this until it is far past the point of no return, and our future generations sadly WILL pay the price. I honestly wish I could be more optimistic, but I have no faith in my country anymore to do the right thing with regards to the environment when it directly impacts our comfort.

[@Lengsel7]

Yep. We as a race in general, are simply too stupid to survive.

[@rgfraunfelder]

It is capitalism warped by political donations...everyone gets away with the environmental crimes until everything starts dieing, then it's not pretty anymore. But wait, it was ok to accept political donations in order to make profit off the unsustainable environmental drain... There is TOO MUCH Money 🤑🤑🤑🤑 in politics. The warped-policies are everywhere. Good going SLC, Too bad, it is all about greed. Let's see what other places, that we can screw-up, Uncle Sam. I live in a country that is full of POLITICAL idiots (the law-makers; who we ignorantly trust to take the "correct & ethical" path; ¿ )

[@jeffspicoli5399]

​@@Lengsel7well what's stopping you from helping your made up problem in your head then. I mean you can step out in front of a moving bus whenever you feel like it.

[@dj_laundry_list]

Tombs are interesting

[@reality5253]

Wake up babe new terra mater video

[@ValliW]

I keep saying indoor hydroponic farming needs to be implemented on an industrial scale. It would solve so many problems at once. It uses a fraction of the water traditional farming does. It would be pesticide free because indoors there are no pests, and in turn that would help the bees and other pollinating in insects populations recover. And without pests there's more yield, *in theory* that should lower the cost of food. It also uses a fraction of the land, so we could let some of that farmland revert back to wilderness helping the ecosystem. It would also create jobs galore. There's literally no downside. Indoor hydroponic farming now!

[@nautilus4335]

Surely this time humans will choose nature over consumption

[@theseeker_]

These environmental changes are heartbreaking to see still world is chasing short term profit with closed eyes.

[@lokingbob]

It's the people without money who suffers the most

[@jeffspicoli5399]

And the environment changes by the way. It doesn't stay the same forever and ever .

[@theseeker_]

@@jeffspicoli5399 But this time it's anthropogenic killing of nature.

[@JoyfulIsAnOctopus]

As informational this is suggesting the solution is to raise prices is not a good idea I suggest allowing the state to do as it will If they want the lake to stay trust me, they will make it stay

[@lavarrobinson5082]

I've lived in utah all my life. The great salt lake and utah lake Are Mud puddle remnants of the great lake bonneville. It is eventually going to dry up like any other mud puddle.

[@travisgarrett9398]

It really isn't a water shortage problem, it's a water management problem. The farmers use up 82% of our total water. Until this year, the policy was use it or loose it. So now, after our legislature met, they passed a law where the farmers can sell back water to the State instead of wasting it. They are also receiving money from the State to purchase more efficient watering equipment as well.

[@jamesferrin5415]

Farmers only use 32.5% of the total water yield in Utah. 82% of human consumed water is diverted for agriculture, 35% of that is returned to flow.

[@alcarbo8613]

Salt Lake City actually isn’t in the desert, it’s the near the desert but the city was built on a green valley caused by the nearby mountains trapping in moisture

[@Aidan_Au]

What about Phoenix, Arizona? Are they in trouble too?

[@terramater]

Yes! But for different reasons and to a different scale. Video about that coming up next!

[@Aidan_Au]

@@terramater Yes please make a video about Arizona. What're are the more "livable" states in the US in your opinion?

[@gailsylva7945]

Old news. Lake is up 2 feet. Hugh runoff coming from record snowfall in Utah this winter. Water donated to the lake from reservoirs. The Earth is dynamic.

[@eeeeggnog._.]

Not old news at all. 2 feet is nothing, we need plenty more winters like this last one

[@hypercrack7440]

When you buy John Harris from Craigslist

[@kabeljager6645]

most all the farms around the lake has got taken over by the suburbs

[@johnpaulcolthrust8207]

"As if you were your own creation, As if you were the chosen nation, The world around you just a rude and dangerous invasion, - Gaia" James Taylor

[@dr.a006]

Of course the starting point always referred to is when the lake was in flood stage on the early 1980s. But still lower than average is not good. I remember seeing on maps Lake Chad or the Aral Sea. Now they are dotted outlines.

[@kendallkahl8725]

As global temperature goes up evaporation will go up. Evaporation over the Oceans means a future of increased flooding. When we hit 3 degrees above normal we will see monster storms like never before.

[@Clawson_customs]

The reason the great salt lake is so low is because the people here in Utah have built huge reservoirs in the mountains around the area and that is where all the water is now

[@jeffspicoli5399]

Exactly because we're not dumb. But we do need to send a bunch of water back to the GSL this year if we can and we can because of all that snow and rain we got since November. Hopefully that long ass drought is done. Or at least on its last legs. And seeing the most snow in recorded history basically, helps me think that's the case.

[@spongebobsucks12]

> European makes video about America. > European also speaks in metric >🤡

[@TheBooban]

7:30 Bingo! Thats the problem. PEOPLE. I've become numb to environmental problems. Mother nature will fix the issue when she decimates us. And we deserve it.

[@igorbukovy4313]

We have to stop the population and economic growth. Our way of life is simply not sustainable.

[@rjung_ch]

That's a fact. Nature needs no mammals who think they are worth more than any other mammal or species. The human mammals time has come, once we're gone evolution will continue and there will be a solution. Guess we are too many and not enough care or are aware or have brains to see the carnage and distruction of nature we collectively are causing.

[@elpito9326]

I don't deserve it, neither do my loved ones. We're not the cause. The owners of Nestlé deserve it, the owners of Amazon, of BP, of Shell, of Tesla... They do. Not me, not the common people.

[@igorbukovy4313]

Even common people deserve it.

[@elpito9326]

@@igorbukovy4313 nah, you clearly know nothing of the situation

[@patrick247two]

Thank you. My nightmare is leagues of Dodge Rams performing donuts across the dry lake bed in an effort to 'own' an imaginary social construct.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

Lake bed might look dry at the surface. But just about an inch down and nothing but mud. Ask the donner party all about it.

[@josephpiskac2781]

There is discussion of piping salt ocean water into the Great Salt Lake. This is a great idea all that is required is that Utah invest outside of Utah.

[@Jane-ur4te]

They said the cost would be into the billions. Too much.

[@josephpiskac2781]

@@Jane-ur4te Too conservative? Utah could become a world leader in aqueducts construction. Also desalination plants could be built at the end of the pipe a vastly benefit Utah.

[@Jane-ur4te]

@@josephpiskac2781 yes they just had a meeting about it and the state said it was so much money it was a pipe dream.

[@TheyCallMeNewb]

Salt Lake City next to a great salt lake. Only now have these two previously disparate points found confluence. !

[@Brian_fooking_Ferry]

Drawts...

[@TheLPN05Fan]

Ach Österreich! That's why I got confused by the title of the channel. No offical channel right? (there's a Natural Documentary series produced by Austrian TV company Servus TV which is called Terra Mater)

[@terramater]

Hi The LPN05Fan! We are "the" Terra Mater Studios that you're talking about :)

[@julenewooden9394]

Who benefits from the Lithium being mined?

[@thethegreenmachine]

Maybe it's an opportunity to clean up the lake bed, now that the water's out of the way. You make it sound like a Superfund site.

[@jeffspicoli5399]

Sorry guess again the water isn't out of the way. It's back and will be there for some time to come. Thanks most snow ever in Utah recorded history.

[@thethegreenmachine]

@@jeffspicoli5399 Definitely a wet winter. Is the lake all the way back to pre-drought conditions?

[@jeffspicoli5399]

@@thethegreenmachine not quite but it's looking good 👍🏻

[@mkc5836]

Tremendously important, easily accessible, very educational, and well presented. Some may call it oversimplified, and they are right- but everyone has to start somewhere, and this is the right place. This video does begin to address the impossible to ignore connections between water usage & profits over the life of humans. (& most other life forms!) Without explicitly stating it, it demands that everyone wake the fcuk up.

[@terramater]

Thank you so much for the feedback, we appreciated that, and thanks for watching our videos!

[@aghyaat2625]

Feeling dissappointed after seening this video! We people are creating hell on only Earth. Anyways, thanks for educating!! 👍

[@terramater]

Yeah, reality can be quite hard :( Thanks for watching!

[@dbcooper1492]

Wow that was annoying

[@TheDane_BurnAllCopies]

8:29 Climate change seem’s like a joke to americans, until the river is drying up, or the Lake is gone…. They do not listen 30 years before when they were told that it would happen….

[@terramater]

That's true, that's another river drying, but there's still hope to save it!

[@Kiyoone]

I can't understand why people dislike this channel videos. It is informative, have a great editing and the aboarded themes are awesome.

[@terramater]

Thanks, Kiyoone!

[@terramater]

Hi Kiyoone! Thanks for the kind words!

[@stubbingtonmarigold3032]

The great salt lake disappears and no more ski resorts? Damn ... that’s a stretch there buddy

[@Jane-ur4te]

It's true. The snow pack relays on the lake effect. It would be a very short season.

[@welcomesp]

4 rivers run into great salt lake originating from the mountain creeks then streams. BUT Agriculturists take the river water for the crop land. No agency stops them. $$$$ wins, the lake loses. ..and the people are not informed about. :(

[@Chesemiser]

And in the long run the agencies encourage over use of water because whatever portion of your water share you don't use one year just gets removed from your share meaning that if one year they decide that they can afford to use less water to help the environment due to it raining more or such they then get virtually punished for it by getting what ever wasn't used removed from their permitted amount indefinitely because you "proved you didn't need it" even if you will need it but could afford to not use it that time.

[@earthling_parth]

Lawns are the stupidest thing I've seen people adopt across US and refuse to give up. If people had shrubs, real plants and trees instead of lawns in their yards, it would be much much greener and take very little water. Anywhere from 30% to 60% of fresh water is used by lawns in USA. It's beyond idiotic and hopefully people can preserve a sizeable chunk of our fresh water use.

[@vortex5896]

push this

[@PrincessTS01]

pray el nino comes