Owens Lake Project
type: channel
description: Documenting life on this broken but beautiful place
date: 2023-02-15T05:15:09Z
update period: hourly
update frequency: 1
update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
generator agent: https://wordpress.org/
items: Back to the lake!
items: This was never supposed to happen.
items: So what does spring migration look like at Owens Lake? BIRDS EVERYWHERE!
items: Owens Lake Project on Exhibit through 2017
items: A second exhibition of the Owens Lake Project in 2015!
items: I need your help!
items: Hidden in plain sight: Owens Lake is a mecca for birds and wildlife
items: Things have been quiet here for a while–here’s why.
items: Exploitation.
items: Look closer.

Back to the lake!
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2023-02-15T05:13:41Z
subject: The Lake
subject: bird
subject: california
subject: documentary
subject: east side
subject: eastern sierra
subject: environment
subject: habitat
subject: ladwp
subject: los angeles
subject: nature
subject: owens lake
subject: owens valley
subject: photography
subject: politics
subject: sierra nevada
subject: water
description: Well, I’ve had a little more down time with this project (and photography in general) than anticipated, but it’s given me plenty of time to think about what I want to accomplish in this next phase of the Owens Lake Project. The last few years have involved an unexpected career change, a move to northern California, and a complete shutdown of this website for the past year thanks to a hacking attack. That last event was finally resolved last week and I’m excited to be up and running, and with a site redesign to boot. It’s good to be back! The Owens Trails project, part of LADWP’s Owens Lake Master Project (no relation at all to my documentary project, despite the very similar name), was officially opened to the public over six years ago along with six specially landscaped and maintained bird habitats or “guilds:” diving waterbird habitat, breeding shorebird habitat, breeding waterfowl habitat, alkali meadow habitat, migrating shorebird habitat, and migrating waterfowl habitat. It’s time to take a look at how those habitats have matured–and time to expand the OLP to include all the wildlife at home on the lake, not just the birds. It’s long been a goal of mine to set up remote trail cameras at locations on the lake to capture (or try to, anyway) everything from coyotes to desert kit foxes to kangaroo rats. Oh, and more birds, too. I’m also in the early stages of outlining a limited-run podcast on the history of the lake and the timeline that got us where we are today. I look forward to interviewing a number of people who are connected to the lake in various ways, so stay tuned for that. And finally, the culmination of the Owens Lake Project will be a book that contains all of the history, all of the photos–all of the things that inspired me to undertake this project and the sights I’ve captured along this fascinating journey. That’s the most distant goal as of now, but will get more attention once I have the podcast underway. Since this next phase will require some sp…
encoded: Well, I’ve had a little more down time with this project (and photography in general) than anticipated, but it’s given me plenty of time to think about what I want to accomplish in this next phase of the Owens Lake Project. The last few years have involved an unexpected career change, a move to northern California, and a complete shutdown of this website for the past year thanks to a hacking attack. That last event was finally resolved last week and I’m excited to be up and running, and with a site redesign to boot. It’s good to be back! The Owens Trails project, part of LADWP’s Owens Lake Master Project (no relation at all to my documentary project, despite the very similar name), was officially opened to the public over six years ago along with six specially landscaped and maintained bird habitats or “guilds:” diving waterbird habitat, breeding shorebird habitat, breeding waterfowl habitat, alkali meadow habitat, migrating shorebird habitat, and migrating waterfowl habitat. It’s time to take a look at how those habitats have matured–and time to expand the OLP to include all the wildlife at home on the lake, not just the birds. It’s long been a goal of mine to set up remote trail cameras at locations on the lake to capture (or try to, anyway) everything from coyotes to desert kit foxes to kangaroo rats. Oh, and more birds, too. <img decoding="async" width="1024" height="512" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/fossilized-mollusks-1024x512.jpg" alt="Fossilized mollusks on the south shore of Owens Lake." class="wp-image-274" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/fossilized-mollusks-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/fossilized-mollusks-300x150.jpg 300w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/fossilized-mollusks-768x384.jpg 768w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/fossilized-mollusks-1080x540.jpg 1080w, https://www.owens…

This was never supposed to happen.
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2016-04-28T22:20:55Z
subject: The Lake
description: So how do you go from dealing with a public utility that has to be dragged kicking and screaming through decades of litigation just to get it to fix a public health disaster it inadvertently created to having that same utility embrace and manage an elaborate set of wildlife and bird habitats, complete with public access to invite people into this strange but beautiful place? You do it with data, you do it with heart, and you do it with years of dogged persistence. That somewhat oversimplifies the process by which we arrive today (tomorrow, technically, for the public dedication), at the opening of the Owens Trails at Owens Lake in the Eastern Sierra, but the transformation has been dramatic and quite possibly unprecedented. Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, who was never legally required to do anything but mitigate blowing dust at Owens Lake, is well into construction of seven different habitats or “guilds” on and around the lake, in cooperation with Audubon California, to meet the migratory needs of the hundreds of thousands of birds who use Owens Lake as a critical stopover on the Pacific Flyway. And they’ve included beautifully designed public access areas and trails so that the public can come to the lake to see the extraordinary place it is. This is a Big Deal. One that’s almost impossible to overstate. I’ll get into what’s happening now, but first, a little history (because context is important). The lake itself has been transformed and exploited for over a century. In the late 1800s, it supported huge steam-powered barges carrying ore and other materials being mined from the Inyo Mountains that flank its eastern shore. Just before the turn of the century, lake levels had dropped too low to allow the steamers to cross—this was partially a result of local farmers drawing water from the Owens River via irrigation canals they dug (many people have dipped their straws into the Owens River for many years, for many purposes). And then most notoriously, along …
encoded: <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-204" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Plaza-detail.jpg" alt="Detail of the Main Plaza Structure" width="960" height="640" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Plaza-detail.jpg 960w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Plaza-detail-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Plaza-detail-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Plaza-detail-624x416.jpg 624w" sizes="(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px" />So how do you go from dealing with a public utility that has to be dragged kicking and screaming through decades of litigation just to get it to fix a public health disaster it inadvertently created to having that same utility embrace and manage an elaborate set of wildlife and bird habitats, complete with public access to invite people into this strange but beautiful place? You do it with data, you do it with heart, and you do it with years of dogged persistence. That somewhat oversimplifies the process by which we arrive today (tomorrow, technically, for the public dedication), at the opening of the Owens Trails at Owens Lake in the Eastern Sierra, but the transformation has been dramatic and quite possibly unprecedented. Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, who was never legally required to do anything but mitigate blowing dust at Owens Lake, is well into construction of seven different habitats or “guilds” on and around the lake, in cooperation with Audubon California, to meet the migratory needs of the hundreds of thousands of birds who use Owens Lake as a critical stopover on the Pacific Flyway. And they’ve included beautifully designed public access areas and trails so that the public can come to the lake to see the extraordinary place it is. This is a Big Deal. One that’s almost impossible to overstate. I’ll get into what’s happeni…

So what does spring migration look like at Owens Lake? BIRDS EVERYWHERE!
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2016-04-27T05:04:10Z
subject: The Lake
description: I’m looking forward to telling you more later this week about the official opening of the Owens Trails installation at the lake, but in the meantime I thought I’d share some images from this year’s spring migration. Every species has a different migration pattern–some make stunningly long journeys, others less so; it’s the range of bird life on the lake in spring that’s truly impressive, however. This is just a small sampling of the hundreds of species who use the lake as a migratory stopover.
encoded: I’m looking forward to telling you more later this week about the official opening of the Owens Trails installation at the lake, but in the meantime I thought I’d share some images from this year’s spring migration. Every species has a different migration pattern–some make stunningly long journeys, others less so; it’s the range of bird life on the lake in spring that’s truly impressive, however. This is just a small sampling of the hundreds of species who use the lake as a migratory stopover. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-180 size-large" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Brine-Flies-The-Lakes-Primary-Food-Source-1024x683.jpg" alt="Brine Flies - The Lake's Primary Food Source" width="625" height="417" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Brine-Flies-The-Lakes-Primary-Food-Source.jpg 1024w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Brine-Flies-The-Lakes-Primary-Food-Source-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Brine-Flies-The-Lakes-Primary-Food-Source-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Brine-Flies-The-Lakes-Primary-Food-Source-624x416.jpg 624w" sizes="(max-width: 625px) 100vw, 625px" /> Brine Flies – The Lake’s Primary Food Source <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-181 size-large" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/California-Gull-Feeding-on-Brine-Flies-1024x512.jpg" alt="California Gull Feeding on Brine Flies" width="625" height="313" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/California-Gull-Feeding-on-Brine-Flies.jpg 1024w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/California-Gull-Feeding-on-Brine-Flies-300x150.jpg 300w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/California-Gull-Feeding-on-Brine-Flies-768x384.jpg 768w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/…

Owens Lake Project on Exhibit through 2017
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2016-04-26T20:08:58Z
subject: The Lake
description: If you didn’t have a chance to see the Owens Lake Project exhibit at G2 Gallery in Venice, California or again at the Interagency Visitors’ Center in Lone Pine last year, it’s now up for a third time! The Eastern California Museum in Independence (very much worth a visit whenever you’re in the area) opened a year-long showing of the project last month, paired with some historical photos of the lake. The juxtaposition of old and new photos is quite striking (and kudos to Jon Klusmire at the museum for this perfect and fascinating approach). The images from the first phase of the project are now part of the museum’s permanent collection. I’m delighted to see the project images on display again, because it’s so important to show people how much life exists on the lake (and on that note–look for a blog post in a couple of days about a VERY significant development on the lake).
encoded: If you didn’t have a chance to see the Owens Lake Project exhibit at G2 Gallery in Venice, California or again at the Interagency Visitors’ Center in Lone Pine last year, it’s now up for a third time! <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="alignleft wp-image-175" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ECM-Flyer.jpg" alt="Life on the Lake Exhibition" width="600" height="776" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ECM-Flyer.jpg 742w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ECM-Flyer-231x300.jpg 231w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ECM-Flyer-624x807.jpg 624w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> The Eastern California Museum in Independence (very much worth a visit whenever you’re in the area) opened a year-long showing of the project last month, paired with some historical photos of the lake. The juxtaposition of old and new photos is quite striking (and kudos to Jon Klusmire at the museum for this perfect and fascinating approach). The images from the first phase of the project are now part of the museum’s permanent collection. I’m delighted to see the project images on display again, because it’s so important to show people how much life exists on the lake (and on that note–look for a blog post in a couple of days about a VERY significant development on the lake).

A second exhibition of the Owens Lake Project in 2015!
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2014-11-19T21:56:20Z
subject: The Lake
description: First, a HUGE thank you to those of you who donated to the GoFundMe fundraiser–most of my data was recovered, and the exhibit this summer at the G2 Gallery went on with no problems or delays. I could not have done this without your help, and I am both grateful and humbled. Those of you who donated at the level to receive a complimentary print from me can expect them within the next week (my techno-nightmares have continued, unfortunately–my PC desktop went belly-up about 10 days ago, which slightly delayed my ability to print those images; it’s been an interesting year, to say the least!). For those of you who were unable to see the exhibit in Los Angeles, you’ll have another opportunity to view it this spring, when I take the project “home” to the Owens Valley. I’m very excited to announce that Friends of the Inyo, an excellent stewardship and conservation group in the Eastern Sierra, is sponsoring a two-month showing of the exhibit during March and April 2015 as part of their first annual Owens Lake Bird Festival. You can read more info on that here. The exact opening and closing dates have not yet been determined, but the exhibit will run for approximately two months, with the closing reception set for April 25 in Lone Pine. The exhibit will be held at a venue I love and have spent many hours at–the Eastern Sierra Interagency Visitors Center, a beautiful facility just north of the Owens Lake. I’m SO excited about the second showing of the project, and especially excited about the location for the exhibit. When the opening/closing dates have been confirmed, I’ll update here with more information, and I hope to see some of you there. There have been some interesting new developments with the LADWP’s obligations on dust control at the lake, but that deserves a post of its own. Once I’ve digested all the details, I’ll devote a new post to it in the next few days. Stay tuned!
encoded: First, a HUGE thank you to those of you who donated to the GoFundMe fundraiser–most of my data was recovered, and the exhibit this summer at the G2 Gallery went on with no problems or delays. I could not have done this without your help, and I am both grateful and humbled. Those of you who donated at the level to receive a complimentary print from me can expect them within the next week (my techno-nightmares have continued, unfortunately–my PC desktop went belly-up about 10 days ago, which slightly delayed my ability to print those images; it’s been an interesting year, to say the least!). For those of you who were unable to see the exhibit in Los Angeles, you’ll have another opportunity to view it this spring, when I take the project “home” to the Owens Valley. I’m very excited to announce that Friends of the Inyo, an excellent stewardship and conservation group in the Eastern Sierra, is sponsoring a two-month showing of the exhibit during March and April 2015 as part of their first annual Owens Lake Bird Festival. You can read more info on that here. The exact opening and closing dates have not yet been determined, but the exhibit will run for approximately two months, with the closing reception set for April 25 in Lone Pine. The exhibit will be held at a venue I love and have spent many hours at–the Eastern Sierra Interagency Visitors Center, a beautiful facility just north of the Owens Lake. I’m SO excited about the second showing of the project, and especially excited about the location for the exhibit. When the opening/closing dates have been confirmed, I’ll update here with more information, and I hope to see some of you there. There have been some interesting new developments with the LADWP’s obligations on dust control at the lake, but that deserves a post of its own. Once I’ve digested all the details, I’ll devote a new post to it in the next few days. Stay tuned! <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-146" src="https://www.owenslak…

I need your help!
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2014-04-28T19:49:15Z
subject: The Lake
description: The link is here. After four years of work on my documentary photography project on The Owens Lake Project, I’m finally on the verge of showing it to the public in the form of an exhibit. Beginning June 10, renowned environmental photography gallery, G2 Gallery – Second Chance: The Owens Lake Project in Venice, California, will be showing my Owens Lake Project in their beautiful exhibition space. Mounting an exhibit is always an expensive affair, and this one will require between $2,000 and $3,000 to print and frame the prints for exhibit. This project has always been a labor of love, with all of the associated expenses up to this point coming out of my own pocket. If you read the “about” page for the project, you’ll understand why I consider this project so timely and important. We’re in the middle of a three-year drought in California, and water issues are more important than ever. Most of the people who live in Los Angeles are completely unfamiliar with the Owens Lake and its connection to their water, and have no idea of the critical wildlife habitat that exists at the lake and which needs protection and preservation. My hope has always been to educate people on what the lake is really like, and why it is so important that we continue restoration efforts there. This exhibit will go a long way in doing just that. Our partner for the exhibit is Audubon California, who will receive a portion of sales during the exhibit, and once the exhbit has ended (including any subsequent showings in other locations), the collection of images will be donated to the Eastern California Museum in Independence, California. This weekend, however, a major complication arose. After returning home from a four-day hike of the Owens Lake perimeter to conclude my photographic work for the exhibit, I discovered that my external storage drive that contains all my image files–including several destined for the exhibit–had died, and taken all those images with it. I’m now faced with the added …
encoded: The link is here. After four years of work on my documentary photography project on The Owens Lake Project, I’m finally on the verge of showing it to the public in the form of an exhibit. Beginning June 10, renowned environmental photography gallery, G2 Gallery – Second Chance: The Owens Lake Project in Venice, California, will be showing my Owens Lake Project in their beautiful exhibition space. Mounting an exhibit is always an expensive affair, and this one will require between $2,000 and $3,000 to print and frame the prints for exhibit. This project has always been a labor of love, with all of the associated expenses up to this point coming out of my own pocket. If you read the “about” page for the project, you’ll understand why I consider this project so timely and important. We’re in the middle of a three-year drought in California, and water issues are more important than ever. Most of the people who live in Los Angeles are completely unfamiliar with the Owens Lake and its connection to their water, and have no idea of the critical wildlife habitat that exists at the lake and which needs protection and preservation. My hope has always been to educate people on what the lake is really like, and why it is so important that we continue restoration efforts there. This exhibit will go a long way in doing just that. Our partner for the exhibit is Audubon California, who will receive a portion of sales during the exhibit, and once the exhbit has ended (including any subsequent showings in other locations), the collection of images will be donated to the Eastern California Museum in Independence, California. This weekend, however, a major complication arose. After returning home from a four-day hike of the Owens Lake perimeter to conclude my photographic work for the exhibit, I discovered that my external storage drive that contains all my image files–including several destined for the exhibit–had died, and taken all those images with it. I’m now faced with the added …

Hidden in plain sight: Owens Lake is a mecca for birds and wildlife
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2014-04-02T17:40:33Z
subject: The Lake
description: No, really–it is. Most who have just a passing familiarity with the lake think of it as a bone-dry lakebed in the Eastern Sierra, devoid of life and water, and little more than a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Recent photography projects on the lake don’t help much in that regard, such as David Maisel’s Lake Project–which is a stunningly beautiful photography series on the lake, but which leaves the viewer with the wrong impression that the lake is lifeless and beyond redemption. In fact, Owens Lake has never been entirely dry. Natural springs and seeps ring its western shore, and multiple aquifers lie just beneath the lakebed’s surface. Those year-round water sources, along with the handful of shallowly flooded grids that LA’s Water and Power has constructed to help with dust mitigation, attract hundreds of thousands of birds every year along the Pacific Flyway. How important is Owens Lake as bird habitat? And what’s a “flyway?” Important enough that the National Audubon Society has designated Owens Lake as an IBA–Important Bird Area, an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Part of what makes the habitat there so critical is its location along the Pacific Flyway, one of four bird “super highways” that stretch north to south in the Americas. Birds–especially waterfowl, shorebirds and wading birds–use the lake as a stopover in spring and fall as they migrate. Several species of bird also use the lake as a breeding ground, including the critically threatened Snowy Plover. And as with any location that brings in huge numbers of birds, there’s an ecological ripple effect–the habitat on and around the lake also supports other birds and wildlife as well. You’ll find birds of prey including several species of raptor and owl–including this burrowing owl I photographed near one of the springs–reptiles, and mammals including the elusive desert kit fox and kangaroo rat. The lake is alive with wildlife year round, and that i…
encoded: <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class=" wp-image-146 " alt="Eastern Sierra Crest Reflected in Owens Lake" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Owens-Lake-and-Sierra-Crest.jpg" width="614" height="410" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Owens-Lake-and-Sierra-Crest.jpg 1024w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Owens-Lake-and-Sierra-Crest-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Owens-Lake-and-Sierra-Crest-624x416.jpg 624w" sizes="(max-width: 614px) 100vw, 614px" /> Eastern Sierra Crest Reflected in Owens Lake No, really–it is. Most who have just a passing familiarity with the lake think of it as a bone-dry lakebed in the Eastern Sierra, devoid of life and water, and little more than a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Recent photography projects on the lake don’t help much in that regard, such as David Maisel’s Lake Project–which is a stunningly beautiful photography series on the lake, but which leaves the viewer with the wrong impression that the lake is lifeless and beyond redemption. In fact, Owens Lake has never been entirely dry. Natural springs and seeps ring its western shore, and multiple aquifers lie just beneath the lakebed’s surface. Those year-round water sources, along with the handful of shallowly flooded grids that LA’s Water and Power has constructed to help with dust mitigation, attract hundreds of thousands of birds every year along the Pacific Flyway. How important is Owens Lake as bird habitat? And what’s a “flyway?” <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class=" wp-image-154 " alt="Burrowing Owl at Owens Lake" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Burrowing-Owl.jpg" width="614" height="410" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Burrowing-Owl.jpg 1024w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Burrowing-Owl-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.owenslakeproject.c…

Things have been quiet here for a while–here’s why.
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2014-03-21T21:34:16Z
subject: The Lake
description: Long time, no see–but let me assure you that the Owens Lake Project isn’t just still alive, things are about to get VERY busy around here (and around the lake). First, a little background to catch you up on the details. Just as I was ramping up work on my project a couple of years ago, everything hit a state of suspended animation. LADWP, along with several groups working to restore Owens Lake, was part of an ongoing working group loosely known as the Owens Lake Master Plan Committee. That group met regularly to discuss, negotiate and occasionally battle over plans to include more habitat restoration and maintenance along with the dust control on the lake that Los Angeles Water and Power was obligated by court order to do. And then abruptly and unexpectedly, LADWP withdrew from work with the committee more than two years ago. All work on the proposed Owens Lake Plan ceased. Ground to a halt. And this was a very worrisome development for all who care about the lake, and the birds and wildlife who call it home. I figured things couldn’t stay quiet forever, so I closely followed any news I could find coming out of LADWP or the Owens Valley, usually by way of updates from the Owens Valley Committee. But as the months dragged by with LADWP still silent, I began to worry. Were they really walking away from all the hard work they’d done with the committee, and planning to cease any further restoration work? Things were beginning to look grim. And then suddenly, much to everyone’s surprise, LADWP last April announced their proposed Owens Lake Master Project. They’d renamed the old draft Master Plan, but retained a great deal of what was being asked for by the committee. It is not without controversy–some of the groups involved with the committee have rejected the proposed Master Project, as they feel it doesn’t go as far as they’d like, and that it will release LADWP from some of their responsibilities on the lakebed. But most of the groups, including Eastern Sierra Audubon…
encoded: Long time, no see–but let me assure you that the Owens Lake Project isn’t just still alive, things are about to get VERY busy around here (and around the lake). First, a little background to catch you up on the details. Just as I was ramping up work on my project a couple of years ago, everything hit a state of suspended animation. LADWP, along with several groups working to restore Owens Lake, was part of an ongoing working group loosely known as the Owens Lake Master Plan Committee. That group met regularly to discuss, negotiate and occasionally battle over plans to include more habitat restoration and maintenance along with the dust control on the lake that Los Angeles Water and Power was obligated by court order to do. And then abruptly and unexpectedly, LADWP withdrew from work with the committee more than two years ago. All work on the proposed Owens Lake Plan ceased. Ground to a halt. And this was a very worrisome development for all who care about the lake, and the birds and wildlife who call it home. I figured things couldn’t stay quiet forever, so I closely followed any news I could find coming out of LADWP or the Owens Valley, usually by way of updates from the Owens Valley Committee. But as the months dragged by with LADWP still silent, I began to worry. Were they really walking away from all the hard work they’d done with the committee, and planning to cease any further restoration work? Things were beginning to look grim. And then suddenly, much to everyone’s surprise, LADWP last April announced their proposed Owens Lake Master Project. They’d renamed the old draft Master Plan, but retained a great deal of what was being asked for by the committee. It is not without controversy–some of the groups involved with the committee have rejected the proposed Master Project, as they feel it doesn’t go as far as they’d like, and that it will release LADWP from some of their responsibilities on the lakebed. But most of the groups, including Eastern Sierra Audubon…

Exploitation.
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2010-05-05T04:01:00Z
subject: The Lake
description: Even before it was drained mostly dry, the Owens Lake was exploited by entities both public and private for the riches it had to give up, and for its ability to transport materials mined from the Inyo Mountains that rise from its eastern shore. As this project goes forward, I’ll look at the ways the lake has been used–and as a result almost ruined. These photos give just a taste of what that exploitation has wrought. Read more about the project here.
encoded: Even before it was drained mostly dry, the Owens Lake was exploited by entities both public and private for the riches it had to give up, and for its ability to transport materials mined from the Inyo Mountains that rise from its eastern shore. As this project goes forward, I’ll look at the ways the lake has been used–and as a result almost ruined. These photos give just a taste of what that exploitation has wrought. Read more about the project here. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-93 " title="Keeler Decay " src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Decay-LR-682x1024.jpg" alt="" width="682" height="1024" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Decay-LR-682x1024.jpg 682w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Decay-LR-200x300.jpg 200w" sizes="(max-width: 682px) 100vw, 682px" /> An abandoned talc mill in Keeler was onced used to process the mineral mined from the mountains to the east. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-94 " title="Keeler Beach" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Beach-LR-831x1024.jpg" alt="" width="831" height="1024" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Beach-LR-831x1024.jpg 831w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Beach-LR-243x300.jpg 243w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Keeler-Beach-LR.jpg 1512w" sizes="(max-width: 831px) 100vw, 831px" /> When the lake dried up and companies abandoned their operations there, towns like Keeler began to die. Only a few residents remain in this almost-ghost town. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-95" title="PPG" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/PPG-LR-1024x655.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="655" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/PPG-LR-…

Look closer.
type: item
creator: admin
date: 2010-04-26T02:09:48Z
subject: The Lake
description: The Owens Lake at a distance–the only way most people ever see the lake–appears to be a wasteland, a dead and dusty plateau. But even before restoration efforts began, the lake supported life at its fringes around the few areas still fed by springs and artesian wells. And now that the LADWP has begun rewatering the lower Owens River and expanding shallow flooding in the lakebed, life has rushed back in with astonishing speed, giving just a hint of what the lake could look like with further restoration and reminding us all what was lost when the Owens was drained dry. Read more about my project here. A Red-Winged Blackbird and Yellow-Headed Blackbird face off in the marsh at Dirty Socks hot springs on the south end of the lake. These photos show bird species that are at the lake early in the breeding season, and the variety of life there continues to increase as spring progresses.
encoded: The Owens Lake at a distance–the only way most people ever see the lake–appears to be a wasteland, a dead and dusty plateau. But even before restoration efforts began, the lake supported life at its fringes around the few areas still fed by springs and artesian wells. And now that the LADWP has begun rewatering the lower Owens River and expanding shallow flooding in the lakebed, life has rushed back in with astonishing speed, giving just a hint of what the lake could look like with further restoration and reminding us all what was lost when the Owens was drained dry. Read more about my project here. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-38 " title="Owens Lake" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Owens-Wetland-2-LR-1024x682.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="682" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Owens-Wetland-2-LR-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Owens-Wetland-2-LR-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /> Portions of the lake have been separated into grids, several of which have carefully maintained shallow flooding and are planted to native saltgrass. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-40 " title="Yawning Gull" src="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/yawning-gull-743x1024.jpg" alt="" width="743" height="1024" srcset="https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/yawning-gull-743x1024.jpg 743w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/yawning-gull-217x300.jpg 217w, https://www.owenslakeproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/yawning-gull.jpg 1353w" sizes="(max-width: 743px) 100vw, 743px" /> The lake's most populous bird species is the California Gull, present year-round at the lake but most numerous in spring and fall. <img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-42" title="Pelicans" src="https://www.owenslake…