Over half of the world's lakes have shrunk, according to a new study published on Thursday. An international research team published their findings in the journal Science and found global warming and human activity to be the chief culprits.
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Lake Mead retains just over one-fourth of the water that it was originally filled with, according to reports from July of 2022. The main contributors to Lake Mead's decreased water levels, besides population growth leading to depletion, include drought and climate change.
Climate warming and human consumption are the two main factors driving the decline in natural lakes. The study found that unsustainable human activities, such as over-extraction of water, led to the drying up of lakes like the Aral Sea in Central Asia and the Dead Sea in the Middle East.
As the British Medical Journal reported in March 2023, the drying Euphrates River has forced some residents to rely on contaminated groundwater, leading to the spread of typhoid fever and cholera.
What happens if Lake Mead dries up forever? If Lake Mead were to run out of water, the Hoover Dam would no longer be able to generate power or provide water to surrounding cities and farms. The Colorado River would essentially stop flowing, and the Southwest would be in a major water crisis.
Key Points. Lake Mead has dropped by 70% due to droughts in the West and it will take many years to refill again, naturally. The reservoir is vitally important to millions of people as a source of water, electricity, and recreation.
Several springs with high amounts of snowmelt have resulted in the reappearance of the lake. The high amount of snowmelt in spring 2023 caused Tulare Lake to form again.
Coroners in Las Vegas have identified human remains found in Lake Mead as its waters recede as those of a 39-year-old man who drowned nearly half a century ago.
Yes. Over the last decade, summer water levels have been higher than average, but dry seasons have been starting earlier than expected, with water levels falling lower than usual. So we're seeing larger fluctuations across the year.