Salton Sea

The Salton Sea is a moderately large body of water located in California’s Imperial Valley, not far from the city of Palm Springs. It has an unusually high level of saline, and it is located almost directly above the San Andreas Fault line. The origin of the Salton Sea as it is presently known is interesting in that it was not naturally created, despite the fact that several rivers (the Alamo River, the Whitewater River, and the New River) feed into the Sea, but was the unintended consequence of an irrigation project. In an ordinary year, enough water flows into the Salton Sea from sources other than the Colorado River for it to maintain its level despite the effects of evaporation, but recently this has begun to change, as California endures a prolonged drought which has caused the Sea to begin to shrink.

Brief History

Geologists agree that the Salton Basin has long been a feature of the region. The Colorado River’s silt deposits created a natural barrier that separated the Basin from the Gulf of California. Because the elevation of the Salton Basin is lower than that of surrounding regions, at various times in history it has been a freshwater lake, an arid basin, and a saltwater lake—its status depends on how much rainfall the area receives, how hot the average temperature is (which affects the amount of evaporation the Basin is subject to), and how much mountain snowpack melts and enters the Basin through the Alamo, Whitewater, and New rivers. There has been speculation that instead of containing one large body of water, as it does now, the Salton Basin has occasionally contained a number of smaller lakes and ponds, which would periodically join together and then separate.

The Salton Sea was the unintended consequence of engineers who were employed by the California Development Company in the early part of the twentieth century. In order to bring more water from the Colorado River into the region for use in irrigating farms, the engineers dug canals in the valley where the Salton Sea now lies. After a cut was made into the banks of the Colorado River (in an attempt at keeping silt in the river from building up), water from the river overflowed into the Salton Basin. Because it was approximately two years before this could be remedied, the Salton Sea was formed.

When the Salton Sea was accidentally created, the existing infrastructure of the basin was destroyed and submerged. This meant the loss of the town of Salton, as well as a sizable amount of land belonging to Native American tribes, and a substantial link of railroad tracks owned by the Southern Pacific Railroad Company. In an effort to try to recover from these economic losses, a number of resort towns have been established near the Salton Sea, hoping to lure tourists to the area. While some tourism has come in from time to time, the high saline content of the Salton Sea, which makes it impossible for most species of fish to survive there, has hindered tourism to a certain extent. The Salton Sea also has several power stations near to it, due to the geothermal activity found in the southern and eastern parts of the lake.

Overview

The Salton Sea is unique in several respects, and this has affected the way it evolves over time. For example, the Salton Sea is periodically fed by runoff and by several rivers, but has few outlets, except for evaporation. This, combined with the fact that much of the water that enters the Salton Sea is unusually high in salt content, has resulted in the Salton Sea’s levels of salinity gradually increasing over time. The effect is similar to what would happen if one had a bowl of water to which one periodically added a cup of water and a teaspoon of salt; the water would evaporate continuously, but the amount of salt in the bowl would constantly increase. In short, the Salton Sea has been shrinking and becoming saltier for several decades.

Interestingly, considering that the Salton Sea was neither naturally nor intentionally created, there have been a number of efforts made to save the Salton Sea from disappearing. One idea has been to construct a dam that would help keep water in the Salton Basin. Other proposals suggest that it would be worthwhile to transfer water into the Salton Sea to replenish what has been lost. This could involve the construction of a pipeline from any of a number of nearby bodies of water, including the Gulf of California. This might make it possible for additional fresh water to become available for residents of California, an attractive prospect in a state vulnerable to drought. In addition, if remedial action is not taken within the next few years, the Salton Sea may disappear entirely. This could lead to the development of sizable dust storms in the basin, which might travel to nearby areas and cause considerable destruction. Others fear that the bacteria and other detritus that would be left in the basin after the water disappeared might produce noxious odors that could potentially be detected as far away as the coastal cities along the Pacific Ocean.

On the other side of the equation, scientists have researched the ways that the Salton Sea and the Salton Basin have interacted with earthquake activity. The data seem to show that when the Basin contains a substantial amount of water, there is a greater frequency of earthquake activity along the San Andreas Fault and other fault lines in the area. To some, this would argue in favor of allowing the Salton Sea to fade away, because it might decrease the chances of a large earthquake occurring in the region and potentially wreaking havoc in the nearby cities of Los Angeles and Palm Springs.

In 2021, the construction of Species Conservation Habitats (SCH) began along the delta of the New River, on the southern back of the Salton Sea. In 2024, $70 million in federal funding was allocated for a 750 acre expansion to that project.

Bibliography

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Case, H. L. Salton Sea Ecosystem Monitoring and Assessment Plan. Reston: US Department of the Interior, US Geological Survey, 2013. Print.

Chung, Eu, et al. "A Linked Hydrodynamic and Water Quality Model for the Salton Sea." Hydrobiologia 604.1 (2008): 57–75. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 June 2015.

Cichon, Meg. "Can Geothermal Energy Save California's Salton Sea?" Renewable Energy World (2014): 1–6. GreenFILE. Web. 5 June 2015.

Dillon, Jesse G., Lisa M. McMath, and Amber L. Trout. "Seasonal Changes in Bacterial Diversity in the Salton Sea." Hydrobiologia632.1 (2009): 49–64. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 June 2015.

Everwine, Eric. "Salton Sea's Species Conservation Habitat to Expand." Calexico Chronicle, 16 Oct. 2024, calexicochronicle.com/2024/10/16/salton-seas-species-conservation-habitat-to-expand/. Accessed 29 Oct. 2024.

Hennessey, Ann. "The Salton Sea Enigma." Outdoor California 69.1 (2008): 28. Print.

Pitzer, Gary. Finding a Solution for the Salton Sea. Sacramento: Water Education Foundation, 2013. Print.

Salton Sea. S.l.: Hardpress, 2013. Print.