Natural disaster
Photography: Vincent Laforet
800,000 YEARS THE LAKE WAS FLOWING
1926 YEAR THE LAKE WAS DRAINED
It looks stunning, but this salt flat has created devastating environmental damage. Up until the early 1900s, Owens Lake, on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, California, was a healthy flowing lake and had been for 800,000 years. But in 1913, in a series of shady deals, the city of Los Angeles started to divert the lake’s water, and by 1926 it was completely dry. The area has been plagued by toxic dust storms ever since. Plans are underway to alleviate the damage, as parts of the lake are being planted with a salt-tolerant native grass, while other areas are being covered with thin sheets of water to turn it into shallow mud flats.
Riding high
Photography: Vincent Laforet/Polaris/Hollandse Hoogte
6 METRES HEIGHT OF WINTER WAVES
2006 YEAR OF COMPETITION
Award-winning photographer Vincent Laforet captured these surfers riding a wave during the Rip Curl Pro Pipeline Masters in Oahu, Hawaii. Local surfer Andy Irons went on to win the series against long-time rival Kelly Slater in surf that was well over two metres. The island of Oahu is home to Hawaii’s state capital, Honolulu, and is often nicknamed ‘The Gathering Place’. www.vincentlaforet.com
