Machine Tested for Reducing Salton Sea Salinity

A tractor-like machine that sprays salty water into the air to speed up evaporation was taken for a test drive Wednesday at the Salton Sea, where the search is on for ways to reduce the salinity in California’s largest lake.

The test of the Turbo Mist machine marked the first time in 40 years that any method of salinity control has been tested there. The sea is 25% saltier than the Pacific Ocean.

“It’s time for action,” said Tom Kirk, director of the Salton Sea Authority. “Up to 1985, the Salton Sea State Recreation Area had more visitors than Yosemite.”

The machine is one of five methods the authority has suggested could help preserve the desert lake, a crucial stop for millions of birds along the Pacific Flyway and one of the most productive fisheries in North America.

Congress could approve a plan as early as this summer to begin restoring the sea.

Federal officials warned in January that the Salton Sea’s ecosystem will die unless 9.4 million tons of salt are pulled from the lake each year.

The sea is about 225 feet below sea level and has no natural outlet. Its salinity continues to rise because evaporation is the only way water escapes.

The Turbo Mist uses accelerated evaporation to remove the salt, taking the lake’s water and blowing it into catch basins. Brine collects in the basins, to be dumped later. An electrical version of the machine will be used on a trial basis.

One Turbo Mist can remove 22 tons of salt a day, according to its maker, Slimline Manufacturing Ltd. of British Columbia. To maintain the current salinity level, 1.36 million tons of salt would have to be removed from the sea each year.