Walker Lake (Nevada)

The Walker Lake [ wɔ ː kɚ leɪk ] is a natural salt lake in the Great Basin of the United States of America. It is located in the western part of Nevada at the foot of Wassuk Range and covers an area of ​​130 km ² in Mineral County. It is 29 km long and up to eleven kilometers wide.

History

The lake is a remnant of prehistoric Lake Lahontan, which covering an area of ​​20,700 km ² covered during the Ice Age much of the northwestern Nevada. Unlike the Pyramid Lake, the lake since the end of the Pleistocene dried several times, possibly as a result of natural distractions of the Walker River in the Carsonsenke.

In the 19th century the region was populated by the lake from the Paiute Indians. Extensive water sampling at the Walker River and its tributaries attended at the time and no later than the late 19th century for a significant drop in water level at Walker Lake. According to the USGS, the level fell 1882-1994 by about 40 meters and brought more water contaminants with it. The salt concentration is so high since 2004, that the majority of the fish population is threatened.