Analysis of Field Observations: Investigation and Genesis of Micro-Landforms in the Muddy and Salty Plains of Lake Urmia

Project Leader: Research Institute for Earth Sciences
Year: 2018

The decline in Lake Urmia’s water level over the past two decades and the desiccation of large portions of the lake have transformed this water body from a permanently supersaturated lake into a saline playa. The exposure of large areas of the lake bed as extensive muddy, saline-muddy, and saline plains is one of the main indicators of this transformation from a lacustrine to a playa environment.

The extent of these plains is considerably greater in the southern part of the lake than in the northern part due to the gentler slope of the lake bed. Their expansion has resulted in the formation of various micro-landforms characteristic of playa environments.

The desiccation of the lake has also created conditions for the extraction and harvesting of salt from the saline areas of the lake bed. At present, salt is extensively extracted for industrial applications, including use in petrochemical industries, glass-melting factories, and other industries. The extraction and stockpiling of loose, unconsolidated salt deposits may facilitate the transport of salt particles toward residential and agricultural areas during windstorms and dust events, potentially causing environmental impacts for communities around the lake.

The construction of the Shahid Kalantari Causeway, in addition to dividing the lake into northern and southern sections and altering the lake’s sedimentation system and water circulation, has caused liquefaction and exposure of muddy lake-bed sediments along the margins of the causeway. This phenomenon may itself be an indicator of ground subsidence in the vicinity of the causeway.