page_title: Imperial Valley
section_title: Sonny Bono Salton Sea NWR
hierarchical_section_title: Imperial Valley / Economy / Sites of interest / Sonny Bono Salton Sea NWR
caption_attribution_description: English: The Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge
context_page_description: The Imperial Valley lies in the California counties of Imperial and Riverside in southeastern Southern California with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the Salton Sea to the west. Farther west lies the San Diego and Imperial County border. To the north is the Coachella Valley region of Riverside County, which together with Imperial Valley form the Salton Trough, or the Cahuilla Basin, also the county line of Imperial and Riverside counties, and to the south the international boundary with the U.S. state of California and Baja California.
  The culture of the area blends those of the United States and Mexico, due to its regional history and geographic location along the international border. The Imperial Valley economy is based on agriculture.
  Imperial Valley was so named by the Imperial Land Company, in hopes of attracting settlers. It is now the home of the El Centro metropolitan area and also an economic center of California's government defined "South Border". Locally, the terms "Imperial Valley" and "Imperial County" are used synonymously.
context_section_description: The Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge is located 40 miles (60 km) north of the Mexican border at the southern end of the Salton Sea in California's Imperial Valley. Situated along the Pacific Flyway, the refuge is the only one of its kind, located 227 feet (69 m) below sea level. Because of its southern latitude, elevation and location in the Colorado Desert, the refuge experiences some of the highest temperatures in the nation. Daily temperatures from May to October generally exceed 100 °F (38 °C) with temperatures of 116–120 °F (47–49 °C) recorded yearly.
caption: The Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge
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