945,067
edits
Changes
m
Bot: 20 interwiki links moved, now provided by Wikidata on d:q751347
[[Image:SanJoaquin watershed.png|thumb|right|250px|Map of the course of the San Joaquin River and its tributaries]]
The '''San Joaquin River''' is one of the two major [[river]]s of [[California]], in the [[United States]]. At {{convert|330|mi|km}} long, it is the second longest river in California, after the [[Sacramento River]].<ref name=sjb>{{cite web|url=http://www.sanjoaquinbasin.com/san-joaquin-river.html|title=San Joaquin Basin: San Joaquin River|publisher=San Joaquin Basin|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref> It begins on the west [[Sierra Nevada (US)|Sierra Nevada]] Mountains and flows west and north to its end at [[San Francisco Bay]], at the [[Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta]].
Its basin, which is about 32,000 square miles (82,879 square kilometers) in size, contains mostly [[Farm|farmland]]. The river provides drinking water to over 22 million California citizens. Its three largest [[Tributary|tributaries]] are the [[Merced River|Merced]], [[Tuolumne River|Tuolumne]], and [[Stanislaus River|Stanislaus]] rivers.<ref name=nrdc>{{cite web|url=http://www.nrdc.org/water/conservation/sanjoaquin.asp|title=Restoring the San Joaquin River|publisher=Natural Resources Defense Council|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
The river was once one of the richest river [[ecosystem]]s in California. However, now over {{convert|60|mi|km}} of the river is dry except during [[flood]]s, because lots of water has been taken away for [[irrigation]]. In fact, below [[Friant Dam]], a dam built in the 1940s on the San Joaquin River, 95 percent of the river's flow is dry. Much of the river is [[Pollution|polluted]], destroying the historic population of chinook [[salmon]], once the southernmost in the United States. [[Pesticide]]s, [[selenium]], and many more toxic materials are carried by the San Joaquin into San Francisco Bay.<ref name=nrdc/>
Now, one of the largest projects in the American West has been begun to restore the San Joaquin River. On September 13, 2006, the Natural Resources Defense Council signed an agreement with Friant Dam users and the [[United States Department of the Interior]]. This agreement would restore the San Joaquin River below the dam, reducing [[pollution]].<ref name=nrdc/>
==Geography==
===Source in the Sierra Nevada===
[[Image:San Joaquin River headwaters.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River, just below Thousand Island Lake.]]
Three forks of the San Joaquin River join to form the San Joaquin River at two places, called ''Balloon Dome'' and ''Junction Butte''.
*The '''North Fork''' (formally called the '''North Fork San Joaquin River''') begins at a unnamed [[lake]] on the west side of the [[Sierra Nevada (US)|Sierra Nevada Mountains]]. This source is at coordinates {{coord|37.7286|N|119.2440|W}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=105:3:4205694310145890::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:264207%2CNorth%20Fork%20San%20Joaquin%20River|title=North Fork San Joaquin River|publisher=United States Geographical Survey|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref> It is at {{convert|11090|ft|m}} above sea level, and is in [[Madera County]].
*The '''Middle Fork''' (or the '''Middle Fork San Joaquin River''') begins at a lake called ''Thousand Island Lake''. This place is at coordinates {{coord|37.6321|N|119.1579|W}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=105:3:4205694310145890::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:263536%2CMiddle%20Fork%20San%20Joaquin%20River|title=Middle Fork San Joaquin River|publisher=United States Geographical Survey|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
*The '''South Fork''' (or the '''South Fork San Joaquin River''') flows out of Martha Lake, at {{convert|11004|ft|m}} above sea level. Martha Lake is at coordinates {{coord|37.0941|N|119.2434|W}}. The river is in Madera and [[Fresno County|Fresno]] counties.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=105:3:4205694310145890::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:267501%2CSouth%20Fork%20San%20Joaquin%20River|title=South Fork San Joaquin River|publisher=United States Geographical Survey|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
===In the Central Valley===
The river continues west into the [[Central Valley]] of California, and is joined by many other rivers flowing off the Sierra Nevada mountains. The most largest of these are the [[Stanislaus River]], [[Tuolumne River]], and [[Merced River]]. The Tuolumne and Merced river both flow out of [[Yosemite National Park]].
As the river flows north and west, it is joined by the following [[Tributary|tributaries]]:
*[[Mokelumne River]]
*[[Cosumnes River]]
*[[Calaveras River]]
*[[Stanislaus River]]
*[[Tuolumne River]]
*[[Merced River]]
*[[Bear Creek (California)|Bear Creek]]
*[[Hospital Creek]]
*[[Ingram Creek]]
*[[Chowchilla River]]
*[[Ash Slough]]
*[[Berenda Slough]]
*[[Fresno River]]
The San Joaquin River and its tributaries pass through/feed the following [[lake]]s and [[reservoir]]s:
*[[Pardee Reservoir]]
*[[Camanche Reservoir]]
*[[New Hogan Reservoir]]
*[[New Don Pedro Reservoir]]
*[[Lake McClure]]
*[[Eastman Lake]]
*[[Hensley Lake]]
*[[Mendota Pool]]
*[[Millerton Lake]]
*[[Pine Flat Lake|Pine Flat Reservoir]]
*[[Lake Kaweah]]
*[[Lake Success (California)|Lake Success]]
*[[Florence Lake]]
*[[Mammoth Pool Reservoir]]
Several man-made channels are also part of the river system:
*[[Stockton Deep Water Ship Channel]]
*[[Grant Line Canal]]
*[[Eastside Bypass]]
*[[Chowchilla Bypass]]
*[[San Luis Drain]]
*[[Madera Canal]]
*[[Friant-Kern Canal]]
===Mouth===
The San Joaquin River eventually meets the [[Sacramento River]], forming the [[Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta]]. This is one of the biggest [[estuary|estuaries]] in the United States. It is near the city of [[Antioch]]. At this place, the San Joaquin River splits into two rivers: the ''Old River'' and the ''Middle River''. The Old River sometimes confuses [[fish]] to go down its channel. As a result, a wall is built between the San Joaquin River and the Old River.
==Human impacts, economy, and development==
===Pre-development ecology===
Before humans began to develop the Central Valley in the 1850s, the San Joaquin River and its surrounding lands were one of the richest [[biology|biological]] habitats in California. In winter, the river would flood the valley, leaving behind [[wetland]]s. These wetlands became rich habitat for [[bird]]s and other animals.<ref name=nrdc/> The habitat of the [[endangered]] ''San Joaquin Kit Fox'' and the ''riparian brush rabbit'' also was near the San Joaquin River.
===Friant Dam: destroying life of the lower San Joaquin===
[[Image:Friant Dam.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Friant Dam.]]
In 1942, a big dam, [[Friant Dam]], was built on the San Joaquin River. This dam took away a lot of water from the river, to [[Irrigation|irrigate]] crops, provide drinking water, and provide electricity. The dam destroyed the [[salmon]] habitat in the river, and also destroyed the creation of these wetlands.
The Friant Dam is:
*{{convert|319|ft|m}} tall
*{{convert|3488|ft|m}} long
*{{convert|267|ft|m}} thick at its base
*{{convert|20|ft|m}} thick at its top
*contains 2,135,000 cubic yards of [[concrete]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/dams/ca10154.htm|title=Friant Dam|publisher=U.S. Bureau of Reclamation|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
===Navigation and shipping===
The San Joaquin River has been used a lot for shipping of products via boats and ships, otherwise known as navigation. The river was first used for navigation during the California [[Gold Rush]] of 1849. Boats carried people over {{convert|200|mi|km}} up the river to look for gold in the mountains. Now, there is a channel that runs all the way upriver to the city of [[Stockton]]. This channel allows big ships to sail in the river up to this point.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2006AGUFM.H33D1540S|title=Mixing and Transport in the Stockton Deep Water Ship Channel|publisher=The Smithsonian/NASA Astrophysics Data System|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref> [[Sediment]], however, has clogged a lot of the river channel above this point, preventing big ships from going any farther.
==Notes==
{{reflist}}
{{Commonscat}}
[[Category:Rivers of California]]
[[Category:Central Valley of California]]
The '''San Joaquin River''' is one of the two major [[river]]s of [[California]], in the [[United States]]. At {{convert|330|mi|km}} long, it is the second longest river in California, after the [[Sacramento River]].<ref name=sjb>{{cite web|url=http://www.sanjoaquinbasin.com/san-joaquin-river.html|title=San Joaquin Basin: San Joaquin River|publisher=San Joaquin Basin|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref> It begins on the west [[Sierra Nevada (US)|Sierra Nevada]] Mountains and flows west and north to its end at [[San Francisco Bay]], at the [[Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta]].
Its basin, which is about 32,000 square miles (82,879 square kilometers) in size, contains mostly [[Farm|farmland]]. The river provides drinking water to over 22 million California citizens. Its three largest [[Tributary|tributaries]] are the [[Merced River|Merced]], [[Tuolumne River|Tuolumne]], and [[Stanislaus River|Stanislaus]] rivers.<ref name=nrdc>{{cite web|url=http://www.nrdc.org/water/conservation/sanjoaquin.asp|title=Restoring the San Joaquin River|publisher=Natural Resources Defense Council|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
The river was once one of the richest river [[ecosystem]]s in California. However, now over {{convert|60|mi|km}} of the river is dry except during [[flood]]s, because lots of water has been taken away for [[irrigation]]. In fact, below [[Friant Dam]], a dam built in the 1940s on the San Joaquin River, 95 percent of the river's flow is dry. Much of the river is [[Pollution|polluted]], destroying the historic population of chinook [[salmon]], once the southernmost in the United States. [[Pesticide]]s, [[selenium]], and many more toxic materials are carried by the San Joaquin into San Francisco Bay.<ref name=nrdc/>
Now, one of the largest projects in the American West has been begun to restore the San Joaquin River. On September 13, 2006, the Natural Resources Defense Council signed an agreement with Friant Dam users and the [[United States Department of the Interior]]. This agreement would restore the San Joaquin River below the dam, reducing [[pollution]].<ref name=nrdc/>
==Geography==
===Source in the Sierra Nevada===
[[Image:San Joaquin River headwaters.jpg|thumb|left|200px|The Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River, just below Thousand Island Lake.]]
Three forks of the San Joaquin River join to form the San Joaquin River at two places, called ''Balloon Dome'' and ''Junction Butte''.
*The '''North Fork''' (formally called the '''North Fork San Joaquin River''') begins at a unnamed [[lake]] on the west side of the [[Sierra Nevada (US)|Sierra Nevada Mountains]]. This source is at coordinates {{coord|37.7286|N|119.2440|W}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=105:3:4205694310145890::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:264207%2CNorth%20Fork%20San%20Joaquin%20River|title=North Fork San Joaquin River|publisher=United States Geographical Survey|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref> It is at {{convert|11090|ft|m}} above sea level, and is in [[Madera County]].
*The '''Middle Fork''' (or the '''Middle Fork San Joaquin River''') begins at a lake called ''Thousand Island Lake''. This place is at coordinates {{coord|37.6321|N|119.1579|W}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=105:3:4205694310145890::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:263536%2CMiddle%20Fork%20San%20Joaquin%20River|title=Middle Fork San Joaquin River|publisher=United States Geographical Survey|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
*The '''South Fork''' (or the '''South Fork San Joaquin River''') flows out of Martha Lake, at {{convert|11004|ft|m}} above sea level. Martha Lake is at coordinates {{coord|37.0941|N|119.2434|W}}. The river is in Madera and [[Fresno County|Fresno]] counties.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=105:3:4205694310145890::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:267501%2CSouth%20Fork%20San%20Joaquin%20River|title=South Fork San Joaquin River|publisher=United States Geographical Survey|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
===In the Central Valley===
The river continues west into the [[Central Valley]] of California, and is joined by many other rivers flowing off the Sierra Nevada mountains. The most largest of these are the [[Stanislaus River]], [[Tuolumne River]], and [[Merced River]]. The Tuolumne and Merced river both flow out of [[Yosemite National Park]].
As the river flows north and west, it is joined by the following [[Tributary|tributaries]]:
*[[Mokelumne River]]
*[[Cosumnes River]]
*[[Calaveras River]]
*[[Stanislaus River]]
*[[Tuolumne River]]
*[[Merced River]]
*[[Bear Creek (California)|Bear Creek]]
*[[Hospital Creek]]
*[[Ingram Creek]]
*[[Chowchilla River]]
*[[Ash Slough]]
*[[Berenda Slough]]
*[[Fresno River]]
The San Joaquin River and its tributaries pass through/feed the following [[lake]]s and [[reservoir]]s:
*[[Pardee Reservoir]]
*[[Camanche Reservoir]]
*[[New Hogan Reservoir]]
*[[New Don Pedro Reservoir]]
*[[Lake McClure]]
*[[Eastman Lake]]
*[[Hensley Lake]]
*[[Mendota Pool]]
*[[Millerton Lake]]
*[[Pine Flat Lake|Pine Flat Reservoir]]
*[[Lake Kaweah]]
*[[Lake Success (California)|Lake Success]]
*[[Florence Lake]]
*[[Mammoth Pool Reservoir]]
Several man-made channels are also part of the river system:
*[[Stockton Deep Water Ship Channel]]
*[[Grant Line Canal]]
*[[Eastside Bypass]]
*[[Chowchilla Bypass]]
*[[San Luis Drain]]
*[[Madera Canal]]
*[[Friant-Kern Canal]]
===Mouth===
The San Joaquin River eventually meets the [[Sacramento River]], forming the [[Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta]]. This is one of the biggest [[estuary|estuaries]] in the United States. It is near the city of [[Antioch]]. At this place, the San Joaquin River splits into two rivers: the ''Old River'' and the ''Middle River''. The Old River sometimes confuses [[fish]] to go down its channel. As a result, a wall is built between the San Joaquin River and the Old River.
==Human impacts, economy, and development==
===Pre-development ecology===
Before humans began to develop the Central Valley in the 1850s, the San Joaquin River and its surrounding lands were one of the richest [[biology|biological]] habitats in California. In winter, the river would flood the valley, leaving behind [[wetland]]s. These wetlands became rich habitat for [[bird]]s and other animals.<ref name=nrdc/> The habitat of the [[endangered]] ''San Joaquin Kit Fox'' and the ''riparian brush rabbit'' also was near the San Joaquin River.
===Friant Dam: destroying life of the lower San Joaquin===
[[Image:Friant Dam.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Friant Dam.]]
In 1942, a big dam, [[Friant Dam]], was built on the San Joaquin River. This dam took away a lot of water from the river, to [[Irrigation|irrigate]] crops, provide drinking water, and provide electricity. The dam destroyed the [[salmon]] habitat in the river, and also destroyed the creation of these wetlands.
The Friant Dam is:
*{{convert|319|ft|m}} tall
*{{convert|3488|ft|m}} long
*{{convert|267|ft|m}} thick at its base
*{{convert|20|ft|m}} thick at its top
*contains 2,135,000 cubic yards of [[concrete]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/dams/ca10154.htm|title=Friant Dam|publisher=U.S. Bureau of Reclamation|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref>
===Navigation and shipping===
The San Joaquin River has been used a lot for shipping of products via boats and ships, otherwise known as navigation. The river was first used for navigation during the California [[Gold Rush]] of 1849. Boats carried people over {{convert|200|mi|km}} up the river to look for gold in the mountains. Now, there is a channel that runs all the way upriver to the city of [[Stockton]]. This channel allows big ships to sail in the river up to this point.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2006AGUFM.H33D1540S|title=Mixing and Transport in the Stockton Deep Water Ship Channel|publisher=The Smithsonian/NASA Astrophysics Data System|accessdate=2009-03-28}}</ref> [[Sediment]], however, has clogged a lot of the river channel above this point, preventing big ships from going any farther.
==Notes==
{{reflist}}
{{Commonscat}}
[[Category:Rivers of California]]
[[Category:Central Valley of California]]