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Home , Colorado River Delta

THE CONNECTION

he has always been a meandering river. It has also been a river that carried large loads of sediment, collected as it drained from the mountains of Colorado and through the canyons of and to the Gulf of . the Gulf extended dunes. The last large infilling of what is now called Millions of years ago, through the Salton occurred in the early 1500s ; however, at Sink to present day Indio . The river intersected the least 6 times during the 1800s water spilled into the Gulf near what is now Yuma . As deposits of sediment sink. In 1891, the lake was 30 miles long, 10 miles built up in the former delta, a shallow, 10 mile wide wide and 6 feet deep, just 16 years before flooding berm was created which extended 30 miles from Yuma breached a temporary canal to create today's Salton to the Mountains on the west side of the val- Sea. ley. Eventually, the berm divided the north and south When not flowing into the , the sides of the Gulf . The lake left to the north dried up, Colorado River continued on its path to the Mexican leaving rich soil from the 1000 feet deep sediments Delta we think of today. As recently as 50 years ago, which had been deposited . the Mexican Delta was a The Gulf to the south was very large marshy area pushed further and further with multiple channels, south as sediments continued rich and abun- to be deposited, creating the dant wildlife . When the rich soils in the val- Colorado River was ley. tamed by man's interven- The river itself was fickle in tion, it stopped its mean- where it flowed . Depending dering. Because of diver- on its sediment deposits, it sions in the U.S. and would change course, flowing , little water now sometimes south around the reaches the Delta regular- large berm to the Gulf and ly. The water diversions, sometimes north to the Salton however, do sustain the Sink. Today's New and Alamo , the Laguna Rivers flow in former Salada and the surround- Colorado River water courses . ing agriculture and cities . The lake which would be Governmental and non- formed in the Salton Sink was governmental organiza- sometimes a much larger lake tions have recognized the than the current Salton Sea . ecological importance of High water lines are easily vis- the lower portion of the ible on the mountains on the west side of today's Delta . Mexico has designated the Upper Gulf and a Salton Sea . portion of the lower Delta as an international bios- Long before European explorers, Colorado River phere reserve . Flood flows that have reached the tribes living in present day Imperial County would Mexican portion of the Delta in recent years have alternate between fishing in the lake, planting crops in demonstrated that both vegetation and wildlife can the river's and planting in the Imperial make a rapid recovery. The Current Connection The historic and geographic Delta extends from The ffistoric DeCta the to the mouth of the Colorado and front the Santa Rosa and Cocopah Mountains to the area just downstream of Yuma . The Salton Sea and the omies and attractions for Mexican portion of the Delta tourists and those seeking today still share important recreation suggest that the ecological connections. efforts to restore the area to Besides being part of the same abundance can benefit both geologic basin, they are con- sides of the border. Figuring nected by riparian corridors otrt how to proceed in the face 'along the Colorado, Hardy, of growth and its demands for New and Alamo Rivers . They scarce water resources, deal- share corridors ing with elevated levels of salt through the Cocopah and and selenium in river water Mountains . Both and restoring habitat which is areas support critical diverse critical to the Pacific flyway habitat types. call for joint research and Between the 175,000 plus cooperative management. birds which are found at the Mexican delta and 3 million I plus found at the Sea on peak winter days, these areas are important wetlands along the Birds Pacific Flyway amid impover- of the Sea ished habitat for migratory waterbirds . Over 90 percent 400 bird species found of natural inland wetlands at the Sea have been lost in California . The endangered Yuma clap- 100 breeding bird per rail, while more frequent- species ly found in the Santa Clara Slough in Mexico, relies on 95% of total grebe both areas for its existence . population use the Sea Some birds from the Sea of in some years Cortez, such as juvenile brown pelicans, disperse to 80% of white pelican the Sea to take advantage of population can be found its abundant food resources . at the Sea The upper and lower deltas share strong cultural 50% of brown pelican connections, as well as com- population may be mon challenges . Shared tribal found at the Sea history, agricultural econ-

is that neither the Colorado River nor the Salton Sea remains natural . Both are strongly The reality affected by human intervention, as are many other natural places around the world . An eco- logical resource should not be judged solely by its natural purity . Both the U .S. portion of the Delta (the Salton Sea and its environs) and the Mexican portion of the Delta (part of the same ) offer excellent oppor- tunities to experiment with management of manmade systems to rehabilitate damaged water resources . Restoring the Salton Sea starts with our existing, vitally important resources . It's the literal bird in the hand . SALTON SEA RESTORATION PROJECT (760) 564-4888 or (702) 293-8129 w ww .saltonsea .ca .go v