Alkalai dust storm over Owen's Lake

Owen's Lake, Calif.
May 1984

Owen's Lake— which once supported paddle wheelers— is now a dry lake because of water exports out of watershed by the Los Angeles Dept. of Water and Power. Because of the exposed salt and alkalai flats, alkalai storms like this are frequent in this windy area. Dust from this lake bed has actually been blown westward over the Sierra Nevada and collected in Los Angeles!

Photography by
Dr. Sharon Johnson
drsharonjohnson@comcast.net
Imagery & site design by
Kat G. Kalamaras