Wednesday April 15, 2026
Desert Review —
After years of planning, permitting, and massive earth-moving work, California’s landmark Species Conservation Habitat (SCH) Project at the southwest end of the Salton Sea has begun filling with water, ushering in a new chapter for one of the state’s most challenging environmental crises. The 2026 Annual Report on the Salton Sea Program, released by the California Natural Resources Agency, highlights this achievement as a watershed moment—literally and figuratively—for restoring habitat, suppressing dust, and improving air quality around the shrinking lake.
The SCH Project, now in active construction and planned to cover approximately 9,500 acres at full buildout, saw its initial 3-square-mile “mega-ponds” filled in March 2025. In just months, the site has already attracted thousands of birds across dozens of species, including American White Pelicans, Neotropic Cormorants, Gull-billed Terns, Brown Pelicans, Northern Shovelers, and Black-necked Stilts. Several species have successfully nested, hatched, and raised chicks. Fish, including gizzard shad, tilapia, and the endangered desert pupfish, have also been observed, demonstrating rapid ecological recovery.