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 that continues through Sunday night after detecting hydrogen sulfide concentrations at 67 parts per billion Saturday morning immediately downwind from the Salton Sea, in an area with little population.
Those numbers exceeded the state standard of 30 parts per billion.
"Winds from the southeast are expected during daylight hours on Sunday, possibly leading to elevated concentrations at both the Near-Shore and Mecca Community sites, with peak concentrations occurring in the morning," 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 Saturday can cause headaches and nausea, but there are no long-term health risks associated with those symptoms, the agency said.
