Smelling Rotten Eggs? Blame The Salton Sea

COACHELLA VALLEY, CA — Some Coachella Valley residents may smell the stench of rotting eggs in the air Sunday due to elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide wafting from the Salton Sea.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District issued an odor advisory through Tuesday morning after detecting hydrogen sulfide concentrations at 239 parts per billion Sunday morning immediately downwind from the Salton Sea, in an area with little population.

Those numbers exceeded the state standard of 30 parts per billion.

"Over the past week, hydrogen sulfide concentrations have been elevated when winds are blowing out of the south, especially during the morning hours," the SCAQMD said in a news release.

Elevated levels of the gas near the lake are relatively common and are a product of natural processes in the water.

The levels detected Sunday can cause headaches and nausea, but there are no long term health risks associated with those symptoms, the agency said.

Southerly winds expected to pick up during the daylight hours Monday and Tuesday have the potential to increase the intensity of the odor, the SCAQMD warned.

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--City News Service