The once-beautiful Salton Sea is the biggest lake in California, and it teemed with water, fish, and tourists just a few decades ago. However, it has since become the biggest environmental disaster in California’s history, with sulfide smells keeping tourists away.
Resting at 227 feet below sea level, its unique location and the surrounding topography meant the lake had formed, dried out, and reformed for millennia. But decades-long drought conditions and modern agricultural methods in the surrounding valleys have reduced freshwater inflows, while making the lake a sink for agricultural runoff that includes artificial fertilizers and pesticides. While this runoff keeps the lake from drying up completely, it is not without its consequences.
Caroline Hung, a doctoral candidate and researcher at the Lyons Biogeochemistry Lab at UC Riverside, has more on what was once a favorite holiday destination for Californians.