[wideawake]

It was man-made - but it was a mistake.

The engineers miscalculated the flow of the river and it swamped the diversion canals.

The Salton Sea was definitely not where the river would have flowed if it had not been tampered with, and it is definitely not what was planned, but its existence was entirely the result of man's interference.

[Michael.SF.]

Agree.

The use of "man made" makes it sound as if was done by design, not by accident.

[CedarDave]

It was man-made - but it was a mistake. The engineers miscalculated the flow of the river and it swamped the diversion canals. The Salton Sea was definitely not where the river would have flowed if it had not been tampered with, and it is definitely not what was planned, but its existence was entirely the result of man's interference.

Interestingly, what prevented the Colorado River from submerging the area in recent geologic times was the buildup of silt from the river that had built a natural berm which kept the river from diverting westward; it also kept the river about 30 feet above sea level. That was what was breached by the building of the canals.

A similar situation occurs today on the lower Mississippi where the river wants to create a new natural pathway to the Gulf of Mexico that bypasses New Orleans. This has led to the Corps of Engineers building an immense series of release gates to divert water to the Atchafalaya River in times of high water. If those gates were not there or if a future record flow overwhelms them, the Mississippi would create a new channel to the gulf that likely would be irreversible.