Friant Dam
| Friant Dam | |
|---|---|
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| Location | Fresno / Madera counties, California |
| Coordinates | 37°00′03″N 119°42′18″W / 37.000783°N 119.704867°WCoordinates: 37°00′03″N 119°42′18″W / 37.000783°N 119.704867°W |
| Construction began | 1937 |
| Opening date | 1942 |
| Construction cost | US$14 million |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Height | 299 ft (91 m) |
| Length | 3,488 ft (1,063 m) |
| Base width | 267 ft (81 m) |
| Impounds | San Joaquin River |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Millerton Lake |
| Capacity | 520,500 acre·ft (642,000,000 m3) |
| Catchment area | 1,675 sq mi (4,340 km2) |
| Surface area | 4,900 acres (2,000 ha) |
| U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Friant Dam | |
Friant Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the upper San Joaquin River in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Fresno County and Madera County near the town of Friant. The dam, completed in 1942, forms Millerton Lake and was built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which owns and operates the dam. The lake and dam are about 15 mi (24 km) north of downtown Fresno. The lake storage capacity is 520,500 acre·ft (642,000,000 m3) for irrigation of the San Joaquin Valley, which is distributed by the Madera- and Friant-Kern-Canals. Its secondary uses include flood control and recreation. Upstream from the dam is the Big Creek hydroelectric system.
The 25 megawatt Friant Power Plant in front of the dam produces hydroelectricity for the Friant Power Authority. There are two smaller power plants that produce power with the minimum-flow release water and the water for fish hatchery operations.
Friant Dam helped create the nation's richest agricultural region. But drying up the San Joaquin River and destroying its fisheries has adversely impacted much of the rest of the state. Severe water quality impairments in the lower San Joaquin River and Delta are among the problems Friant Dam has caused for downstream areas, including farmers in the Delta who struggle to sustain San Joaquin County's own $1 billion-per-year agriculture industry. Delta farmers who have historically relied on water in the lower San Joaquin River for irrigation must contend with elevated salinity levels that can cause crop damage. Farmers and cities in San Joaquin County have also seen cutbacks in their water supplies from the Bureau of Reclamation's New Melones Reservoir (on the Stanislaus River) because the Bureau uses that facility - instead of Friant Dam releases - to release "dilution flows" into the lower San Joaquin to avoid violations of Delta water quality standards. (http://www.e2.org/jsp/controller?section=SanJoaquinRiverSettlement&docId=11213)
[edit] References
- Department of Water Resources (2011). "Station Meta Data: Friant Dam (Millerton) (MIL)". California Data Exchange Center. State of California. http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/profile?s=MIL&type=dam. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- Central Valley Project Friant Division (4 June 2009). "Friant Dam". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. http://www.usbr.gov/projects/Facility.jsp?fac_Name=Friant+Dam&groupName=Overview. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- Central Valley Project Friant Division (21 April 2011). "Friant Division Project". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. http://www.usbr.gov/projects/Project.jsp?proj_Name=Friant%20Division%20Project&pageType=ProjectPage. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
[edit] External links
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