Toxic dust from California’s shrinking Salton Sea is harming children’s lung growth – our study tracked the impact in 700 kids

Epidemiologists at USC and UC Irvine found that windblown dust from California's shrinking Salton Sea is impairing lung growth in children across the Imperial Valley, with effects greater than those seen near busy urban roadways. The team tracked over 700 elementary school-age children across five northern Imperial Valley cities, documenting respiratory symptoms and lung function measurements over several years. Nearly 1 in 5 children in the region have asthma—far higher than the national rate—and those living closest to the sea showed reduced lung function and slower lung growth linked to higher dust exposure. The Salton Sea, California's largest inland lake at over 340 square miles, has shrunk for decades due to drought and agricultural water diversion, exposing 36,000 acres of dry lake bed that release agricultural chemicals, pesticides, salt and toxic metals when wind stirs them up. As water sources continue to diminish and proposed lithium extraction expands in the region, air pollution is expected to worsen further.