The 35 x 15 square miles Salton Sea is located near the California-Mexico border. The sea's average depth is 29.9 feet and approximately 51 feet at its deepest point. Hundreds of years ago, the Salton Sea was a lakebed that was known as Lake Cahuilla. The Lake was fed by local mountain runoff but eventually dried up as the climate began to change into hotter, drier weather. Because the lake had no outlet, minerals and salts accumulated and remained when the lake dried up. The surrounding desert land was irrigated with water from the Colorado River by early pioneers. In 1902, a canal was opened on the California side of the Colorado River, which ran through Mexico, before turning north and bringing water to the Imperial Valley. Many more settlers migrated to the region and began to cultivate the land.

In 1904, the Colorado River flooded and water flowed into the Salton Trough, creating the Salton Sea. The Colorado continued to flow through the Imperial Valley, flooding much of the new farmland along the way. President Roosevelt enlisted the Southern Pacific Railroad to work on stopping the flow of water by dumping rock at the opening of the river. The project was a success but by this time a new 'sea' had been created.

During the 1960's, the Salton Sea became a recreational area for water-skiers and fishermen, but as time passed, high water levels began to flood out shoreline businesses and eventually the charm of the sea faded. In the past twenty years, the Sea has suffered an increase of severe bird and fish die-offs. High salinity values and evaporation rates, along with the inflow of agricultural runoff have seriously altered the sea's ecosystem. The sea is a basin with no outlet, which allows for anything that is brought in, to accumulate in higher concentrations. The Salton Sea's ecosystem is expected to collapse within 15 years unless an alternative is implemented to save it from its impairment.