The first revival flows of the San Joaquin River have stopped about 30 miles downstream of Mendota Dam, well short of fully refilling the dried riverbed.
Reconnecting the entire river probably won't happen until next year, but federal officials collected a lot of information from monitoring wells during the seven-week experimental flow that ended Friday.Officials believe a lot of water was lost in a section that has been mostly dry for the last half-century."As we sort out all the data, we'll have a better feel for how much we lost and how the river reacted," said Jason Phillips, restoration program manager for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. "But there were no surprises."The river restoration began Oct. 1 under a lawsuit settlement signed by farmers, environmentalists and the federal government in 2006. The San Joaquin dried up and salmon runs died after Friant Dam northeast of Fresno began capturing the water in the late 1940s.The experimental flow was stopped Friday so Central California Irrigation District can perform a regularly scheduled safety inspection of Mendota Dam, 62 miles downstream of Friant Dam.The Bureau of Reclamation, which owns and operates Friant Dam, will resume water releases Feb. 1.To completely refill the San Joaquin, the flows would have to travel an additional 84 miles downstream of Mendota Dam to reach the confluence of the Merced River.Earlier this week, the water moved quickly -- taking about 24 hours -- from Mendota Dam to Sack Dam, 23 miles downstream. That's because the river already had water flowing in it. Irrigation water is routinely sent from the Mendota Pool down that stretch of the river.But the river moved very slowly in October, inching along for weeks through a 20-mile dry section between Gravelly Ford and the Mendota Pool. The river did not reach the pool until this month.Throughout the process, officials and the farmers who own Mendota and Sack dams discussed how the water would pass through the dams. Federal officials said the talks helped to create a relationship that they want to continue as the restoration unfolds.