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Mono Lake is said to be the second oldest lake in the United States. It is a salt lake, much like the Great Salt Lake in Utah. There are springs in the lake and as the calcium rich water is exposed to the carbonate in the lake water, it mineralizes over time into these unusual tufa formations. Many years ago, when Los Angeles needed more water, they tapped the rivers and streams that supplied the lake causing it to start to dry up, and it lost more than 60 feet in depth. This exposed the tufa formations. In 1994, it was ruled that the lake must be returned to its 1963 levels in a compromise decision.