'It's no horror story to me'

Note: This article is a sidebar to this issue's feature story.

Norm Niver has lived in Salton City with his wife, Connie, for nearly 30 years. A retired professional musician and TV repairman, he now publishes The Pelican Post, a newsletter about the Salton Sea. He's been known to test the purity of the sea's water by taking a few sips in front of visitors.

Norm Niver: "Can it be saved? Yes, it can, but time's going on. We're starting to see algae blooms more common, bigger. One of these days, they're going to have an unprecedented fish kill, and no one's going to restore the sea once that happens.

"These people out here, some of "em, they sit back and say, "Ah, don't worry, they'll take care of it." Most of them have never been to a meeting of any kind. They say, "Leave it alone, we don't want everybody out here." They don't care about the sea being saved, but they don't realize that once this sea turns upside down, everybody's going to get the hell out of here. I get more response from people who live away from here.

"Beauty-wise, I've never been dissatisfied with what I see here. I'd like to see less fish floating the shore. I'd like to see reclaimed water (from San Diego) coming in. Other than that, it's still a beautiful place. Connie and I sit out on the front porch at night and if it's the wintertime, we throw over one of those little blankets you plug in. We have our martinis. We always have martinis before dinner, and I love it. It's no horror story to me. It's a paradise, as is."

• Water