OFF-LAKE SOURCES OF AIRBORNE DUST IN OWENS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA. by NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES ENGINEERI. ISBN 9780309726375, 0309726379 instant download

OFF-LAKE SOURCES OF AIRBORNE DUST IN OWENS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA. by NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES ENGINEERI. ISBN 9780309726375, 0309726379 instant download

Prepublication copy
Owens Lake (Patsiata) is located at the southern end of the Owens Valley (Payahuunadü) in California. After water was diverted into the Los Angeles Aqueduct starting in 1913, the dry lakebed became one of the largest sources of airborne particulate matter in the United States, including particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of 10 micrometers or less. -
These small particles can penetrate into the lungs and cause or worsen a variety of health problems like asthma, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and respiratory infections. Since 2001, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, at the direction of the Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District, has implemented dust control measures on the lake bed. 
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These on-lake sources are defined as those that lie below the 3,600-ft elevation regulatory shoreline that defines the Owens Lake bed. The District has also implemented approximately 140 acres of dust control measures on off-lake areas at the Keeler Dunes. Together, these controls have made substantial progress toward reducing the frequency and intensity of airbourne dust.