Municipal and industrial water consumption alone has lowered the Great Salt Lake by about 1.3 feet. Around 67 percent of Utah’s household water goes outdoors, mostly to lawns.
Agriculture claims 63 percent of water in the Great Salt Lake Basin and is attributed with dropping the lake by about 7 feet.
Half of Utah’s agricultural water irrigates alfalfa fields, according to a 2015 study by the Utah Foundation. A lot of that hay doesn’t even stay in Utah — it’s exported to Asia and the Middle East.
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