The Rough Guide to Bolivia by Shafik Meghji

Author:Shafik Meghji
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780241199893
Publisher: Rough Guides

Brief history

The Salar de Uyuni occupies what was once the deepest part of an enormous lake, known as Lago Tauca, which covered the southern Altiplano until 12,000 years ago. Reaching depths of up to 70m, Lago Tauca existed for a thousand years and covered the area now occupied by Lago Poopó, the Salar de Coipasa and the Salar de Uyuni – and was itself the successor to an earlier lake, Lago Minchín. The Salar was formed when the last waters of Lago Tauca evaporated, leaving behind salt that had been leached into the lake from the surrounding mountains, where it had been deposited millions of years ago before the Andes were formed, when what is now Bolivia was beneath the ocean.

According to studies, the salt extends to depths of up to 120m, packed in layers sandwiched between sedimentary deposits. In the dry season, the surface of the Salar, up to a depth of 10–20cm, becomes extremely hard and dry. Beneath this crust, though, the salt remains saturated with water. As the top layer dries, it contracts, forming cracks which draw the underlying salt water up by capillary action, thereby forming the strange polygonal lines of raised salt that cover the Salar in the dry season. As well as salt, the Salar is also home to the world’s largest deposit of lithium (a mineral used in mobile phones, laptops and tablets, electric cars and many other devices). The Bolivian government has started extraction projects – and international mining conglomerates would dearly like to do so too – but there are fears that mining could have disastrous consequences for the fragile ecosystems surrounding the Salar.

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