Salton Sea: What Went Wrong?

Even as early as 1961 scientists were concerned that the Salton Sea's days were numbered due to increasing salinity levels. The fish populations that were introduced would not be able to survive, creating an environmental and economic catsatrophe. Nearly a decede later, two tropical storms flooded the struggling seaside resorts, signaling the end of the dream. The Salton Sea was now an environmental disaster, with skyrocketing salinity levels, devastating algae blooms, and a cocktail of agricultural runoff that mixed into the water from the many farms of the Imperial Valley. Even today there still isn't an easy answer to the question of saving the sea, as many argue not only over an environmental solution, but over the fate of the water itself. There have been outbreaks of botulism that threaten the fish and bird populations, with huge die-offs occurring in the first half of the decade. Salton City is perhaps the best example of the dream destroyed - miles of cracked pavement wind and stretch through the empty desert, street signs rust at vacant intersections, and the desert has reclaimed the green of the golf course. The infrastructure for a great city was built, yet homes were never constructed and families never came. Is the Holly Corporation partly to blame for squandering the resources of investors? Was too much promised and not enough delivered? Some would argue that Holly bailed from the Salton City Project when they sensed it wouldn't be as profitable as anticipated, leaving investors in the lurch and a city half-built. The final death knell came in 2000, when the magnificant Yacht Club was razed. North Shore suffered a similar fate, although its Yacht Club has been spared since it was designed by architect Albert Frey. It closed its doors in 1984, and ever since it's become a haven for photographers and skaters.