Physical Scientist, U.S. Geological Survey
Utah Water Science Center
Bio:
Molly Blakowski is a Physical Scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey at the Utah Water Science Center and is preparing to defend her dissertation on the generation, transport, and composition of Great Salt Lake dust. She sits on the Board of Directors of FRIENDS of Great Salt Lake and the Steering Committee of the Dust Alliance for North America. She is committed to increasing public awareness of the challenges Great Salt Lake is facing and improving the way dust and metals pollution are evaluated here and elsewhere.
Title: The Dust Never Seems to Settle for Long These Days: What We Talk About When We Talk About Dust: Shared Goals, Lessons Learned, and Opportunities for Future Work
Abstract: Dust from desiccating saline lakes can have significant impacts on the environment, air quality, human health, and the economy. Yet, there's no one-size-fits all approach to monitoring, measuring, or mitigating dust emissions from dry lakebeds. At the last Issues Forum, we listened to experts describe their efforts at Owens Lake, Mono Lake, and Salton Sea. How have their findings and advice impacted investigations of dust in our own backyard? What are our current knowns and unknowns about dust emissions from the dry lakebed of Great Salt Lake? Join us for a collaborative presentation and panel discussion of how we've been working to better understand the social and environmental impacts of dust and what research and management opportunities lie ahead.