Today, the CES-AES is operated by Agricultural Operations, a support department of the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at UCR. In addition to the original CES-AES, the department also oversees the Coachella Valley Agricultural Research Station, located about southeast of campus, in a desert environment near the Salton Sea. (Acquired in 1991 to mitigate the loss of agricultural lands on the UCR main campus due to development.) On the two stations, over 50 crops are grown for research including citrus, avocado, turfgrass, asparagus, date palms, vegetables, small grain, alfalfa, and ornamentals.