Methods and systems for enhancing cooling pond performance and salt production in a solution mining operation

A method for increasing salt recovery in a cooling pond system, comprising:

• increasing a Reynolds number of a brine flow stream within one or more cooling ponds to increase convective cooling of the brine flow stream, thereby increasing salt precipitation from the brine stream, wherein each of the one or more cooling ponds has a precipitated salt layer formed on a bottom surface of the pond, and a volume of brine solution over the precipitated salt layer, wherein a pond depth is measured from a top surface of the precipitated salt layer to a top surface of the brine solution,
• wherein increasing the Reynolds number comprises:
• forming at least one submerged dam within the pond, wherein the at least one submerged dam is positioned across at least a portion of a pond width, the at least one submerged dam having an upper dam surface located below a pond surface;
• and
• actively controlling the pond depth within the one or more cooling ponds to optimize cooling of the brine flow stream through the cooling pond system.