Winter's disastrously low snowfall could further complicate an already-audacious plan to refill the dying Great Salt Lake in time for the 2034 Winter Olympics in Utah.
The plan being pushed by Utah officials and Olympics supporters received a major boost when President Donald Trump proposed $1 billion in federal assistance to acquire more water and address environmental concerns. The lake has been shrinking for decades as farmers divert melting snow and rain onto fields to grow crops, including alfalfa for cattle.
Boosters remain optimistic that the coalition they've assembled can reverse the long-term declines in time for the lake to reflect the Olympic flame for the world.
“I am fully convinced we're going to fix this. This is a fixable problem,” said Josh Romney, a Utah businessman and son of former Sen. Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential candidate.
Josh Romney said saving the lake may cost as much as $5 billion and require about 260 billion gallons of water, roughly the same amount used by residents and businesses in New York City over nine months.
