Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID OR_2023_Smith

Assessment of Legal and Policy Options to Restore Water Levels in Lake Abert and Summer Lake

Institute: Oregon
Year Established: 2023 Start Date: 2023-09-01 End Date: 2024-08-31
Total Federal Funds: $7,500 Total Non-Federal Funds: $7,500

Principal Investigators: Michelle Smith

Project Summary: Global declines in endorheic basins—that is, basins that have no external surface drainage other than evapotranspiration or groundwater seepage—are not new. Attention has turned to the changes in endorheic basins within the Great Basin. The three main prehistoric pluvial lakes in the Great Basin—Bonneville, Lahontan, and Chewaucan are drying; the remnant Great Salt Lake has raised health and safety issues connected to windblown dust. Lake Abert and Summer Lake in southeastern Oregon—the remnants of Lake Chewaucan—are also silently disappearing but without much fanfare, even though both lakes are important stops for migrating waterfowl and related ecotourism. More than a century ago, an approach to decision making known as “The Oregon Way” was used to protect public access to Oregon’s beaches, and it may now provide the answer to preserving Lake Abert and Summer Lake.