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Show San Joaquin Valley. These reservoirs have a com- bined capacity of 41,000 acre-feet. Big Dry Creek Reservoir, about 10 miles northeast of Fresno, pro- vides protection to Fresno and Clovis and their adjacent agricultural and industrial areas. Mari- posa, Owens, and Burns Reservoirs are units of a four-reservoir system, of which the fourth-Bear Reservoir-has not yet been constructed. The sys- tem will provide protection for about 136,000 acres of agricultural land and to Merced and smaller communities, as well as reduce flood outflows to the San Joaquin River. As flood flows follow a seasonal pattern in the Central Valley it is possible to combine flood con- trol and conservation storage in the same reservoir. Shasta Reservoir is used for flood control as well as for other purposes. Friant Dam also has flood control utility. Facilities under Construction and Authorized Five Federal reservoirs currently under construc- tion will provide flood storage capacity exceeding 2 million acre-feet. These reservoirs are: Folsom Reservoir on the American River, to provide flood protection to the Sacramento urban area; Isabella Reservoir on the Kern River, to provide protec- tion for 350,000 acres of agricultural and oil field land in the Kern River area, for the city of Bakers- field, and for 260,000 acres of cropland in the Tulare Lake area; Pine Flat Reservoir on the Kings River, to provide flood protection for about 80,000 acres of cropland in the Kings River service area; Farmington Reservoir on Littlejohn Creek, to help protect 58,000 acres of agricultural land and subur- ban areas and industrial sites immediately south of Stockton; and the Merced County stream group of four dams, which is considered under construc- tion, though no work is now in progress. Three have been completed. The Cherry Valley Reservoir is being constructed by San Francisco with Federal financial aid, and will provide 340,000 acre-feet of flood storage. In return for the Federal aid the city will operate the reservoir in conjunction with the Lake Eleanor and Hetch Hetchy Reservoirs for flood protection in the San Joaquin Valley. Further flood control storage will be provided in the New Don Pedro Reservoir, also to be constructed by local interests with Federal aid. Authorization has been given for an additional six flood control reservoirs. These are: Black Butte Reservoir on Stony Creek; Success Reservoir on Tule River in Tulare County; Terminus Reservoir on Kaweah River; New Melones Reservoir on Stanislaus River; New Hogan Reservoir on the Calaveras River; and Iron Canyon Reservoir on the Sacramento River. These authorized reservoirs will provide an aggregate flood control storage of 1.5 million acre-feet. Total flood control capacity in all under construc- tion and authorized projects amounts to 3.6 million acre-feet. Of this total, 3 million will also be used for other purposes. Channel improvement and levee construction for flood control are authorized for the lower San Joaquin River and tributaries, major and minor tributaries in the Sacramento Basin, Bear Creek in San Joaquin County, upper Butte Basin, and other locations. Some of these projects now are under construction. Situation upon Completion of Present Authorized Program The Corps of Engineers estimates that comple- tion of the present program will prevent annual flood damages of 19 million dollars. Protection will be provided for more than 40 urban damage centers and for almost 2 million acres of agricul- tural land. It will have made possible a higher type of use on 200,000 acres of agricultural land. However, it is anticipated that at the end of the current program, protection needs of urban areas will have increased and that further protection of agricultural land would be desirable. Average annual flood losses will still be in excess of 6 million dollars and some land will still be held to a lower form of use than would be possible if it were pro- tected from floods. Programs for Further Construction A flood control survey report was presented in 1949,9 which incorporates existing, authorized, and additional works into a basin flood control plan. This plan contemplates a total of about 30 reser- voirs, with about 12 million acre-feet of capacity. The program also calls for extensive enlargement and rectification of flood channels, new levees, and improvement of existing levees along approximately 1,000 miles of streams and floodways. * H. Doc. 367, 81st Gong., 1st sess. (1949). 101 |
