Willard water level

[oldguy]

I was checking out the water level at Willard and noticed that in the last two days it has dropped 2 ft. Goes anyone have an idea why?

[joatmon]

Saving the Great Salt Lake? Certainly no irrigation this time of year.

[wiperhunter2]

I was checking out the water level at Willard and noticed that in the last two days it has dropped 2 ft. Goes anyone have an idea why?

Not sure where you got that info because we were out there yesterday and found it had gone up 1.5 ft since last Fall. I guess it's possible that it was 2 ft higher than what we saw but we were out there the week before and it hadn't dropped any from then.

[BURLEY]

This is from the US bureau of reclamation web site and it shows a 2 feet drop in last 2 days(black line). Red line is last years levels.

[oldguy]

That is where I found it I am just watching it see when it starts to fill.

[Bassin_Blitz]

For some reason they only update Willard monthly so the levels are not accurate.

If you look the inflow CFS it has not been updated since 12/31/22 at that time there was 217 CFS flowing into Willard.

[Addicted2eyes]

I noticed the canal was drained again at 12th street so guess water is not dumping into Willard for now
Just heads up

[Addicted2eyes]

Update!! The canal at 12th st is again full and water is flowing into Willard yeaaaaaaaa

[wiperhunter2]

Update!! The canal at 12th st is again full and water is flowing into Willard yeaaaaaaaa

That is great news, do you think there is a chance Willard will fill this year?

[oldguy]

Praying it will!!!

[RockyRaab2]

I wouldn't bet on it. The news is nothing but "Save the GSL!" these days and the loudest voices would rather have brine shrimp than walleye and wipers.

[Gone Forever]

I wouldn't bet on it. The news is nothing but "Save the GSL!" these days and the loudest voices would rather have brine shrimp than walleye and wipers.

You're smarter than that Rocky.  You know the huge environmental impact the lake has and you know the GSL is much more important to our way of life than some non native fish living in a mudhole.

No lake, no lake effect, drinking water snowfall decreased by half into the cottonwood canyons.  More dirt and dust on the snow covered mountain causing the snow to melt faster and leaving no reserves for August.  The dust is full of heavy metals like selenium, which is poisonous.
Lastly, the GSL is OUR desalination plant.  The moisture picked up in the winter from it's unfrozen surface is salt free although the moisture came from the lake.  Then, the non salty, pure fresh water falls as snow and becomes available to us to use.  If there is no GSL, there will be no water for Willard at all, nor many other lakes.

[wiperhunter2]

With the size of the GSL being so greatly deminished, it sure is amazing we are still getting record amounts of snow. I heard on the news last night that Alta just broke the old record of 400 plus inches. If there was any truth to rumors of doom and glum, I don't see how that would be possible, plus all of these so called heavy metals that supposily will kill us, I wonder how it hasn't happened in all this time with the Salt flats being the result of lake Boniville drying up and those dirt and dust clouds haven't killed anyone. As a matter of fact the number of people living here has increased, sure doesn't sound like many people are worry about it. IMO this is more to get people up and arms about a none exiting problem, any of are feeble attemts to fix this problem will do little to help untill we get more than one back to back big snow Winters like this one. It's just a way for the state to raise our taxes and get us to look the other way from bigger issues our state faces.

[SkunkedAgain]

I wouldn't bet on it. The news is nothing but "Save the GSL!" these days and the loudest voices would rather have brine shrimp than walleye and wipers.

You're smarter than that Rocky.  You know the huge environmental impact the lake has and you know the GSL is much more important to our way of life than some non native fish living in a mudhole.

No lake, no lake effect, drinking water snowfall decreased by half into the cottonwood canyons.  More dirt and dust on the snow covered mountain causing the snow to melt faster and leaving no reserves for August.  The dust is full of heavy metals like selenium, which is poisonous.
Lastly, the GSL is OUR desalination plant.  The moisture picked up in the winter from it's unfrozen surface is salt free although the moisture came from the lake.  Then, the non salty, pure fresh water falls as snow and becomes available to us to use.  If there is no GSL, there will be no water for Willard at all, nor many other lakes.

I call bullshit on this whole GSL issue, I want to see the supposed science that proves how much effect the lake has.  You keep saying no lake effect snow, how come with the lowest levels in recent history, we are seeing greater snowfall in the cottonwood canyons this year than any other ski areas in the country? (reference KSL articles in last two weeks).  This whole GSL issue is to save their sailboats, brine shrimp operations, mineral operations and other big money interests.  It's a crock of crap that they are pushing with scare stories to persuade the unknowing into believing their line to support their agenda.  Every issue they bring up has no real solid backing.  I'm surprised you bought into their koolaid... Time to start governing according to what is really happening instead to scare tactic what if's that they only hypothesize... Show me some true proof and I'll listen, but so far every point I have heard can be proven in question...

[FishfulThinkin]

I wouldn't bet on it. The news is nothing but "Save the GSL!" these days and the loudest voices would rather have brine shrimp than walleye and wipers.

You're smarter than that Rocky.  You know the huge environmental impact the lake has and you know the GSL is much more important to our way of life than some non native fish living in a mudhole.

No lake, no lake effect, drinking water snowfall decreased by half into the cottonwood canyons.  More dirt and dust on the snow covered mountain causing the snow to melt faster and leaving no reserves for August.  The dust is full of heavy metals like selenium, which is poisonous.
Lastly, the GSL is OUR desalination plant.  The moisture picked up in the winter from it's unfrozen surface is salt free although the moisture came from the lake.  Then, the non salty, pure fresh water falls as snow and becomes available to us to use.  If there is no GSL, there will be no water for Willard at all, nor many other lakes.

You picked the wrong year to use that argument. This year with the lowest recorded levels for GSL we currently have some of the highest snowpack levels on record so your theory is not very convincing to many of us. Furthermore, the lake effect is not very significant to the overall snowpack. For the mountains south and east of the GSL it is estimated that only 5% of the snow total during a year can be attributed to lake effect.

[RockyRaab2]

I make no argument about the benefits of the GSL either pro or con. I'm just saying that if the loud voices have their way, Willard will suffer.

[Bassin_Blitz]

Just for fun here is the required flows below the Plain city diversion where the Willard canal gets its water, it looks like they are splitting it about 50/50 right now.

Ogden at its lowest monitoring station 25.6 CFS
Weber at its lowest monitoring station  126 CFS
Weber below the diversion 76.8 CFS

[MWScott72]

I hate it when people pick current events (such as this year's record snow so far) and they try to use it as proof that the underlying problem is non-existent. The situation the GSL is in did not come about in 1, 2 or 5 years. It's a compounding of many years where the trend is less water getting to the lake due to drought conditions. Couple that with less water getting to the lake because of human diversions, and there you have it. To look at one year as proof that there isn't a problem is foolish. We currently have environmental conditions bringing more moisture to the state. And when that pattern shifts as it surely will???

The Bonneville Flats are not the GSL proper. The Flats don't receive all the pollutants the GSL receives or has received. GSL is a terminal lake and receives pollutants generated in its watershed via its tributaries. That over several hundred years has built up toxic chemical and heavy metals in the lakebed sediments. If that sediment dries out and the wind blows, those toxic chemicals become airborne and go where the wind blows them.

[FishfulThinkin]

[quote="MWScott72" pid="1141553" dateline="1674862251"]
I hate it when people pick current events (such as this year's record snow so far) and they try to use it as proof that the underlying problem is non-existent.  The situation the GSL is in did not come about in 1, 2 or 5 years.  It's a compounding of many years where the trend is less water getting to the lake due to drought conditions.  Couple that with less water getting to the lake because of human diversions, and there you have it.  To look at one year as proof that there isn't a problem is foolish.  We currently have environmental conditions bringing more moisture to the state.  And when that pattern shifts as it surely will???

The Bonneville Flats are not the GSL proper.  The Flats don't receive all the pollutants the GSL receives or has received.  GSL is a terminal lake and receives pollutants generated in its watershed via its tributaries.  That over several hundred years has built up toxic chemical and heavy metals in the lakebed sediments.  If that sediment dries out and the wind blows, those toxic chemicals become airborne  and go where the wind blows them.


FYI: I did not assert that this years record snowfall was "Proof that the underlying problem is non-existent" I simply called BS on your claim that without the lake, snowfall to the cottonwoods would decrease by half. "No lake, no lake effect, drinking water snowfall decreased by half into the cottonwood canyons." The number is nowhere near half and is estimated to be around 5%.

[MWScott72]

And I did not state that there would "50 percent les" snow in the Cottonwoods. There would be less no doubt, but I did not give that number. Let's say it's only 5% as you state. Utah's claim to fame is the light, dry fluffy stuff and that is directly tied to the lake. With the lake gone or seriously reduced, there will also be a downgrading of the "Greatest snow on earth" and that will further negatively impact the resorts as just another piece in the of the negative ways an impaired GSL impacts Utah.