Outrage as California vacation spot beloved by Hollywood stars is now plagued by horrendous stench – as ‘toxic dust’ sparks health fears

A popular California vacation destination once visited by the likes of Rock Hudson, Frank Sinatra and Jerry Lewis is now plagued by a suspicious stench.

The Golden State’s largest lake is shrinking at an alarming rate, making it saltier, dustier and giving off a strong odor reminiscent of eggs.

Once home to popular resorts such as Coachella Valley, Mecca and Bombay Beach, Salton Sea is now described by visitors as a “salty swamp of despair” that “smells of death.”

‘The smell is horrible!’ wrote one tourist on TripAdvisor. ‘Something between a sewage treatment plant and a mountain of roadkill from the stagnant water that accumulates along the “sea” and its little bay.’

Another described the Salton Sea as “Satan’s favorite hellhole.” “Imagine the hottest, most disgusting desert just feet away from the most disgusting smelling, filthiest water you’ve ever seen,” they said.

‘The history behind it is interesting, but not interesting enough to cover up the smell of rotten fish that you smell for weeks after your visit.’

A recent study by researchers at UC Riverside found that the odor has been a problem for residents for years.

Caroline Hung, who helped conduct the research, told DailyMail.com that the stench is caused by the lake’s dramatic shrinkage in recent years, coupled with an increase in pollutants, fertilisers and algae blooms beneath the surface.

Hung, a doctoral candidate in the Lyons Biogeochemistry lab in UC Riverside’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, described the Salton Sea as a “terminal lake” because water escapes only through evaporation.

The Golden State’s largest lake was formed accidentally in 1905 when the Colorado River overflowed, breached the levees and flowed into the Salton Sink desert valley.

The sunny area was soon transformed into a holiday destination by developers, who expanded the coastline with resorts, hotels, yacht clubs and much more.

In the 1950s, thousands of vacationers came here, including celebrities like Frank Sinatra and The Beach Boys. At one point, it was the most visited destination in the state, surpassing Yosemite National Park.

But in the 1970s the area fell into disrepair due to a lack of rainfall and rising temperatures.

Fast-forward to 2024, and the Salton Sink has become a Salton Stink. The lake has dropped 10 feet in the past 20 years, while regularly reaching temperatures of 97F in the summer.

According to Hung, the smell comes from algae producing hydrogen sulfide during the decomposition process, a gas that smells like eggs.

In a normal lake, thermal layers naturally trap the worst odors far below the surface.

“When algae die, they consume oxygen as they sink through the water column,” Hung explains.

‘This process depletes dissolved oxygen, especially in the deeper layers of the lake. Anaerobic bacteria thrive in the oxygen-poor bottom waters.

‘These microorganisms use sulfate reduction for energy and produce sulfide as a byproduct.

Sulfide accumulates in bottom waters until it is released into the air through mixing in the lake, such as upwelling or overturning.

“This release creates the characteristic rotten egg odor often associated with the Salton Sea.”

According to Hung, the increase in algae was caused by an increase in “excess nutrients” in the lake in the form of fertilizers and pesticides from nearby farms.

She said the odor levels are twice the official California odor standard for sulfide, which is 30 parts per billion. In the lake itself, levels have gone up to 70 parts per billion.

But the sulfide levels are still “an order of magnitude lower than the parts-per-million levels that would be directly toxic to humans,” Hung said.

“However, the impact on aquatic life is much more serious,” she said.

In the 1990s, millions of fish in the Salton Sea began dying, leading to local extinctions of entire species.

“The mass mortality was mainly caused by lack of oxygen (anoxia) and euxinia (high sulfide content) in the water,” Hung said.

Birds that depended on the waters’ aquatic life, such as American white pelicans and little grebes, have also left the shores of the Salton Sea.

Elaine Loreto, a Salton City resident, told DailyMail.com that the local government “doesn’t care” about the stinking lake despite the misery it causes.

“Kids from our local schools have written letters and health organizations have asked the governor of the state to do something,” she said.

“It has been brought to the governor’s desk for funding to ensure it is filled, but he continues to deny it.

‘Every year, more and more children and adults in the region are diagnosed with respiratory problems such as asthma.’

Lisa Clark, who lives in Niland, a town of 500 near the lake, is one of the asthma patients who reports that their condition has worsened because of the lake.

“I’ve been having a really bad case of asthma lately,” she told the LA Timesand added that her household’s medical bills have doubled since she moved to the region.

‘It is getting worse and my husband is experiencing the same effect. Our health seems [to be] decreasing.’

The lingering odor that everyone within a few miles of the lake smells is even driving some residents away.

“I might have to move because of the smell,” Jessica Perez, a 22-year-old receptionist in Mecca, told the local newspaper Desert sun.

“It’s definitely getting worse. I’ve lived here forever and I like living here, but I don’t know if I can stay.”

South Coast Air Quality Management District regularly issues an “odor alert” for H2S, the rotten-egg smelling gas rising from the lake.

Scott Epstein, who oversees air quality assessments for the agency, recommended drastic measures such as wearing Covid masks to ward off the stench.

He also advised residents to stay indoors, keep windows and doors closed, limit strenuous outdoor exercise as much as possible and install an air purifier in the home.

But there is a glimmer of hope for the future. According to Hung, lithium reserves a mile beneath the Salton Sea could one day provide a solution.

Silicon Valley magnates are mining the mineral for use in electric car batteries. As workers move to the area, the Salton Sea’s problems are coming into the spotlight.

But this will be a long process. For now, Hung advocates “nature-based solutions” to clean up the lake, including building wetlands at river mouths to capture the odor-causing gases.