The Great Salt Lake in Utah is about to receive a major gift. Compass Minerals — a company that produces salt and plant nutrients — is donating 200,000 acre-feet of water each year to the lake, according to a recent article published in Fox 13 Salt Lake City.
To put that amount of water in context, Fox 13 noted the donation is the equivalent of 99,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools each year.
The donation comes at a time when the Great Salt Lake has reached record lows. In 2022, the Great Salt Lake dropped to its lowest level due to water diversion, drought, and climate changes.
The severe drop in the lake's water level has major consequences for the local economy and surrounding ecosystem. Some of those consequences include reduced snowpack, toxic dust, and devastating impacts to public health and wildlife.
While the company's donation aims to help the lake, Compass Minerals has been under scrutiny in the past for its water and mineral extraction of the lake, per reports by Fox 13. However, new laws are preventing companies from withdrawing water from the lake when the levels are low.
Along with passing stricter legislation protecting the lake, the state government has also created breaks on severance taxes when companies enter voluntary agreements to cut water usage.
"We're hopeful other companies look at the lead the Compass set and come into place," House Speaker Mike Schultz told Fox 13. "But if not? We will move forward with mandated cuts for consumption on the Great Salt Lake. We have to."
On top of the indefinite water donation, Compass Minerals is also donating 65,000 acres of land on the North Arm of the lake to Utah's Division of Forestry, Fire, & State Lands for lake protection.
By donating water and land to the lake, the company is not only protecting the lake from drying up but also safeguarding the ecosystems that rely on the lake for survival. As more mineral extraction companies follow in Compass Minerals' steps, the Great Salt Lake can be restored to its natural state.
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