America's Great Salt Lake is at risk of collapsing in the next few years.
In a worst-case scenario, the world-famous body of salt-water has just a few months to recover before it becomes a problem.
The rivers feeding into Utah's vast lake have been diverted for more than a century. A study found that each year 3.3 trillion liters of water is diverted before reaching the lake.
The state has set a new record for the lowest water levels ever recorded as a result of the mega-dry spell.
The Great Salt Lake has shrunk by two-thirds since the 1980s according to reports from earlier this year.
The Utah Department of Natural Resources doesn't like to break records.
"Urgent action is required to protect and preserve this important resource." The lake is not in good shape.
Utah's lake is one of the few places on the planet where the underwater reefs are still growing.
The structures are made of dense concentrations ofbacteria andalgae. Stromatolites are believed to be the oldest evidence of life on the planet.
Modern versions of the 'living fossils' are drying out as water levels in the Great Salt Lake continue to fall. The mats turn from green to white when they meet the air. When returned to water of a suitable salinity, the remains do not recover.
The Great Salt Lake is getting more and more concentrated with salt. The researchers found that the lake's salinity was as high as 26 percent in some places.
Carie Frantz is a Biologist at Weber State University.
For several summers now, Frantz has led a group of undergrad students to monitor the lake's microbialites in the field and lab to see what happens when bleached reefs are re-submerged.
She says that last year it was encouraging because they could come back quickly.
The increase we saw last year was not seen this year. The organisms are under stress. It might be too high for them to grow.
The northern part of the Great Salt Lake was affected by the construction of a causeway in the 1950's. The body of water was split by the railroad.
The northern section became dangerously salty because it was mostly fed by fresh water.
The pink hue that can be seen from space was caused by a mass die-off of organisms in the lake.
The Great Salt Lake has a lot of saltier water than the ocean. The ones that can make a difference are the ones that can turn sunlight into food for brine shrimp and brine flies.
If the lake continues to dry out, dust and mercury pollution will be a problem. Asthma and cardiovascular issues were more common when a lake in California met the same fate.
The New York Times reported that the lake's bed contains high levels of arsenic. It is possible that these poisons will be carried into the lungs of people living nearby if the shoreline continues to erode.
Salt Lake City legislators have made some attempts to conserve water, but they are not keeping up with climate change or rising water demands.
If policymakers take drastic action, Frantz and her team are hopeful.
The team wrote that if the Great Salt Lake rebounded soon by some combination of societal shifts in water use and high precipitation years, the community could recover.
Frantz is worried that wont happen. She says that the body of water is getting harder to recuperate from as it gets saltier.
In a recent GSA press release, Frantz said that they weren't acting as fast as needed.
A biology professor at a college is concerned. She told The New York Times that the Great Salt Lake is on the verge of collapsing.
It's frightening.
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