A Beautiful Sierra Lake—Emptied
Mono Lake tufa, from South Tufa, in the pink light of dawn.
I have been enchanted by the magic of Mono Lake from the first time I visited, over 15 years ago. I was immediately awed by this sensory wonderland. I was delighted by the soothing sounds of the waves lapping, the fragrance of the surrounding sage, the taste of the lobster taquitos at Tioga Toomey’s overlooking the lake, and the relaxing ease of floating at shallow depths in the briny water. But the visual experience of Mono Lake is most unusual. The lake, nestled as it is on the dramatic eastern side of the Sierra Nevada crest, not far from Yosemite National Park, would be a sensational sight even at its historic level. Instead, though, we see a lunar-like landscape of strange and fascinating rock formations. I was filled with excitement exploring them in my canoe.
Reflections of tufa at Old Marina.
What happened here?
These highly unusual rocks, called tufa, are calcium carbonate formations that precipitate in Mono Lake’s briny water. The lake is saline because, like most of the Great Basin between the Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Mountains, it has no natural drainage outlet. [1] Over time, evaporation concentrates minerals under the lake’s surface. The tufa form where the fresh local springs running down from the surrounding mountains enter the saline lake. [2] The minerals are crystalline, and so form these fascinating shapes.
Tiny tufa just starting to precipitate on the beach at South Tufa.
Decades or even centuries are required to create tufa towers such as we see today at Mono Lake, and the structures are exceedingly fragile. This special environment also supports colonies of endemic brine shrimp and native alkali files. [3, 4] Mono Lake is home to one of the largest nesting sites for native California Gulls, and a stopover site for many species of migrating birds. [5]
Courtesy of Mono Lake Committee
How is it that we are able to see all of these tufa without getting under the Mono Lake surface? Viewers of the classic California film “Chinatown” may be familiar with the activities of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power in nearly entirely draining Owens Lake. [6] But Los Angeles’ thirst for water went beyond the Owens Valley all the way up to Mono Lake, about 144 miles km north. The Los Angeles Aqueduct was extended north, and LADWP began to divert water from the nearby creeks that had historically fed Mono Lake. [7] After diversions begain in 1941, the lake level dropped 45 feet until they were finally slowed in one of the most celebrated cases of in the history of environmental litigation. [8]
10 Things That Make Mono Lake Special
Beautiful eastern Sierra location, nestled next to the Sierra crest
Exposed tufa towers
Home of the Kootzaduka'a People [9]
Nesting site for California Gulls [10]
A water source along the Pacific Flyway, a north-south route for many migrating birds [11]
Endemic brine shrimp, an important food source for migrating birds [12]
Alkali flies, also a food source for birds [13]
Wonderful educational and art programs of the Mono Lake Committee [14]
Dark sky environment, lovely for astrophotography
The love of many people who have gasped with joy at the beauty of the lake
David Gaines, one of the founders of the Mono Lake Committee. Photo courtesy of the Mono Lake Committee.
How Mono Lake Was Saved
The precious, special, and beautiful environment at Mono Lake has fortunately not suffered the same fate as Owens Lake, which was virtually entirely drained and dried. [15] A group of students, led by, among others, David Gaines (pictured above), and Sally Judy, joined forces and went to fight for Mono Lake, forming the Mono Lake Committee to educate people about the lake and to advocate for it. [16]
In 1979, the Mono Lake Committee joined the National Audubon Society in suing the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power under the public trust doctrine, arguing that bodies of water should be protected by the government for the use by everyone. In a landmark 1983 decision, the California Supreme Court agreed that the public had an interest in Mono Lake and that it should be protected. Proceedings moved from the court to the California State Water Resources Control Board, which in 1994 established 6,392 feet as a sustainable level at which the lake could be managed. [17]
Mono Lake Today
The State Water Resources Control Board created a compromise solution under which the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power continues to divert water from Mono Lake today. The lake level is examined every year on April 1 to determine the amount of water that LADWP is allowed to divert. On April 1, 2022, the lake level was measured at 6,379.9 feet, just a fraction of an inch under the 6,380-foot threshold that would have allowed LADWP to divert 16,000 acre-feet of water from Mono Lake, as it did in 2021. Because the lake level is lower in 2022, LADWP may only divert 4,500 acre-feet of water under the State rules. [18]
Despite this landmark compromise, Mono Lake’s level has not risen to the management level specified by the State Water Resources Control Board. Projections were that the lake would reach the management level by 2014, and the reasons why the higher lake level has not yet been reestablished are not entirely known. [19]
So, What Do We Do?
Meanwhile, hundreds of miles south in Los Angeles, water conservation efforts have been hugely successful and laudable. In 2020, the city received an innovation award for water conservation efforts. [20] Does LADWP still need the water it is taking from Mono Lake? Maybe it could afford to spare the lake a little, reduce diversions of its own initiative.
Perhaps you are an Angeleno. You might not have known where some of your water was coming from, and the problems LADWP was creating up north. You might have made efforts to conserve water yourself — replaced a thirsty lawn with a California native landscape, for instance. But you may still be concerned that, if Los Angeles gives up its water rights in the Sierra, at some point, this will create a water crisis for the city.
I would suggest that Los Angeles could reduce Mono Lake diversions, perhaps not in perpetuity, but for a few years. LADWP could create a healthier ecosystem at Mono Lake now, while still retaining its rights to the water in the future if a crisis situation arises.
The lunar landscape of Mono Lake, with a low lake level this past February, with significant distance between the lake surface and these tufa.
I hope that, if more Angelinos knew where some of their water was coming from, they would make further efforts to conserve. I hope that, with consciousness-raising and understanding, the people of Los Angeles could persuade their Department of Water and Power to reduce its water diversions from Mono Lake. I hope the migrating birds will continue to have a source of water in the eastern Sierra on their annual journeys. I hope that my niece and nephew, who live in Redondo Beach, will be able to enjoy this beautiful high desert location when they are adults. I hope that all of of us who treasure the magical uniqueness of Mono Lake may continue to enjoy the sensory delights we find in our special place. I hope for our future.
Summary
Mono Lake is a beautiful eastern Sierra lake.
Mono Lake has no natural drainage, so minerals concentrate in the lake, forming fascinating rock formations called tufa.
Many bird species depend on Mono Lake for nesting and as a water source while migrating.
Endemic brine shrimp live in Mono Lake, providing an important food source for birds.
In 1941, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power began diverting water from the streams that feed Mono Lake, draining the lake by 45 feet.
The Mono Lake Committee and the National Audubon Society litigated successfully against LADWP under the public trust doctrine.
The State Water Resources Control Board issued a 1994 Decision requiring that the level of Mono Lake be restored to a management level, set at 6,392 feet. Under the Decision, LADWP is allowed to continue to divert water from Mono Lake under controlled conditions, and must reduce diversions when the lake level is low.
Despite this compromise, the level of Mono Lake has not risen to the expected management level.
With conservation, LADWP may be able to reduce diversions voluntarily and restore Mono Lake to the management level.
Sources:
[1] Mono Lake Committee. “Geology.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/geology/
[2] Mono Lake Committee. “Tufa.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/tufa/
[3] Mono Lake Committee. “Brine Shrimp.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/brineshrimp/
[4] Mono Lake Committee. “Alkalai Flies.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/alkaliflies/
[5] Mono Lake Committee. “California Gull High Desert Rookery.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/birds/#california-gull-high-desert-rookery
[6] Wikipedia. “Owens Lake.” March 12, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owens_Lake
[7] Wikipedia. “California Water Wars.” December 30, 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_water_wars#Mono_Lake
[8] Mono Lake Committee. “Saving Mono Lake.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/savingmonolake/
[9] Mono Lake Kootzaduka'a Tribe. “Mono Lake Kootzaduka'a Tribe.” Undated. https://monolaketribe.us/
[10] Mono Lake Committee. “California Gull High Desert Rookery.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/birds/#california-gull-high-desert-rookery
[11] Mono Lake Committee. “Pacific Flyway.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/birds/#pacific-flyway
[12] Mono Lake Committee. “Brine Shrimp.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/brineshrimp/
[13] Mono Lake Committee. “Alkali Flies.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/naturalhistory/alkaliflies/
[14] Mono Lake Committee. “Field Seminars.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/fieldseminars/
[15] Wikipedia. “Owens Lake.” March 12, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owens_Lake
[16] Mono Lake Committee. “Saving Mono Lake.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/aboutmonolake/savingmonolake/
[17] Ibid.
[18] Mono Lake Committee. “State of the Lake.” Undated. https://www.monolake.org/learn/stateofthelake/
[19] Ibid.
[20] Water Technology. “City of Los Angeles Lauded for Water Conservation Efforts.” April 29, 2020. https://www.watertechonline.com/water-reuse/article/14175122/city-of-los-angeles-lauded-for-water-conservation-efforts
Beth Zuckerman, self-portrait
I am a high-energy creature of passion, a photographer and an aerial dancer. Through my photography, I share with you my explorations of extreme environments, such as places of great geologic drama.