Register now for international terminus lakes symposium Oct. 26-29

The latest research and findings on closed-basin lakes will be presented at "The International Symposium on Terminus Lakes: Preserving Endangered Lakes through Research" Oct. 26-29 in Reno. Scientists are invited to attend the conference to be held at the University of Nevada, Reno, located in the vicinity of several well-studied terminus lakes, including Walker Lake, Pyramid Lake and Mono Lake.

"This is a must-attend symposium for those interested in the conservation and restoration of terminus lakes," said Mike Collopy, director of the University of Nevada's Academy for the Environment. "We will have scientists presenting the latest results of their research on lakes throughout the western U.S., as well as internationally."

The symposium will highlight the extensive research recently completed in Nevada's Walker Basin, where the Walker Lake Basin ecosystem, economy and alternative agricultural crops were the subject of 10 comprehensive research projects. The Walker Basin program explored the best means to get additional water to Walker Lake -- a declining lake and one of only three desert terminus lakes in North America with a freshwater fishery - while maintaining the basin's economy and ecosystem. The research was conducted by scientists at the University of Nevada, Reno and DRI.

"The research on the Walker Basin desert terminus lake ecosystem provides a blue print for restoration of desert terminus lake ecosystems throughout the world" said Jim Thomas, director of DRI's Watershed Environmental Sustainability Center. "It's important to understand how to restore a desert lake ecosystem while maintaining a vibrant agricultural community and economy."

The symposium features keynote speaker Wallace Broecker, Ph.D., world-renowned climate change researcher at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and winner of many of the world's highest awards in science, and a presentation on international terminus lakes by Berry Lyons, Ph.D., director of the Byrd Polar Research Center and professor at The Ohio State University. Lyons has conducted research on all seven continents and studied semi-arid, closed-basin lakes in Australia, Antarctica, the northern Great Plains and the U.S.'s Great Basin.

Presentations on watershed research in the western United States and internationally will be given by other attending researchers. A field trip from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake, a terminus desert lake fed by Lake Tahoe and the Truckee River, will be conducted the final day of the symposium.

Source: University of Nevada, Reno