Final Great Salt Lake Comprehensive Management Plan
potential sediment-bound contaminants such as mercury. The amount of dust emitted per acre of lake bed playa exposed is unknown. The characteristics of exposed lake bed are highly variable, and numerous factors including hydrology (lake level and precipitation), sediment composition, wind direction, and wind patterns affect the amount of dust emitted as a result of wind erosion (Reynolds et al. 2007). In general, undisturbed dry playas emit less dust than salt-rich wet playas. Undisturbed dry playas are defined as playas in which the groundwater table is less than 5 m deep (Reynolds et al. 2007). The exposed playas around GSL are generally salt-rich, wet playas that are susceptible to wind erosion.
Figure 2.13. 2008 summary of PM10 emissions for Box Elder, Davis, Weber, Tooele, and Salt Lake counties.
Figure 2.14 illustrates the amount of lake bed exposed under each lake level category. Because of the relatively shallow depth of the lake, the amount of area exposed increases greatly in response to minor changes in lake level.
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