A combination of water diversions and climate change-related shifts have led to record low water levels and increasing salinity at Great Salt Lake (GSL) (1, 2). Low water levels not only impact those directly dependent on the lake—brine shrimpers and migratory birds, for example—but also the millions of individuals living along the Wasatch Front. Increasing toxic dust levels from exposed lakebed and potential shifts to snowpack in the region are of primary concern. Children and marginalized communities are especially vulnerable to the respiratory health impacts of toxic dust (3, 4). According to the 2023 Utah People & Environment Poll (UPEP), 87% of Utahns are “concerned” or “very concerned” about the drying of GSL and related issues (5).
Woodbury et al. (Thu,) studied this question.