The Harney Basin is an arid basin (and a physiographic section) in southeastern Oregon in the United States, at the northwestern corner of the Great Basin. One of the least populated areas of the contiguous United States, it is located largely in northern Harney County, bounded on the north and east by the Columbia Plateau (of which it is contained within, physiographically) and the south and west by a volcanic plain. The basin encompasses an area of approximately 13,800 sq mi (38,900 km²) in the watershed of Malheur Lake and Harney Lake. Malheur Lake is a freshwater lake, while Harney Lake is saline-alkaline.[1]