Skip to content
  • Home
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • About Our Staff
    • About Our Board
    • Our Commitment to Diversity
    • GGBA Code of Conduct
    • Strategic Plan
    • Annual Report
    • Job Opportunities
    • GGBA in the News
  • Blog
  • Osprey Cam
  • Contact Us
    • Contact Us
    • Join/Renew
    • Donate
    • Other Ways to Give
    • Planned Giving
    • Member Login
    • Corporate Partnerships
    • Violation Report
Golden Gate Bird Alliance
Golden Gate Bird Alliance
  • Education
    • Speaker Series
      • Past Speakers
    • Eco-Ed for Kids
    • Classes
      • Birding For Everyone Scholarship
    • Rotary Nature Center
  • Conservation
    • Conservation Info
    • Christmas Bird Counts
    • Bird-Friendly Coffee Club
  • Volunteer
  • Bird With Us
    • Birdathon 2023
    • Field Trips
    • Classes
      • Birding For Everyone Scholarship
    • Christmas Bird Counts
    • SF Bay Ospreys
    • Travel With GGBA
    • Birding Sites
    • Birding Resources
  • Archives
    • Trip Reports by Year
    • Past Speakers
    • The Gull Archives
    • GGBA Press Releases
    • Travel with GGBA – Past Tours
  • Log In
  • Donate
  • Become a Member
Golden Gate Bird Alliance
Golden Gate Bird Alliance
  • Education
    • Speaker Series
      • Past Speakers
    • Eco-Ed for Kids
    • Classes
      • Birding For Everyone Scholarship
    • Rotary Nature Center
  • Conservation
    • Conservation Info
    • Christmas Bird Counts
    • Bird-Friendly Coffee Club
  • Volunteer
  • Bird With Us
    • Birdathon 2023
    • Field Trips
    • Classes
      • Birding For Everyone Scholarship
    • Christmas Bird Counts
    • SF Bay Ospreys
    • Travel With GGBA
    • Birding Sites
    • Birding Resources
  • Archives
    • Trip Reports by Year
    • Past Speakers
    • The Gull Archives
    • GGBA Press Releases
    • Travel with GGBA – Past Tours
  • Log In
  • Donate
  • Become a Member
 

Restoring the San Joaquin River

  • September 30, 2012

By Ilana DeBare

The San Joaquin River is the second longest river completely contained within California, but I bet you’ve never gone white-water rafting on it.

You’ve probably never even gone birding alongside it.

That’s because for the last 70 years, much of the San Joaquin River has been completely dry — diverted above the Friant Dam for use by Central Valley farmers.

Consider the photo below, of a section of the San Joaquin “river.” The water in this picture is only there as part of a test release; otherwise, what used to be a river is now a flat, sandy field.

 

San Joaquin riverbed

But change is on the way.

In 2006, federal officials agreed to restore 60 miles of the San Joaquin River as part of a lawsuit settlement with environmental groups including the Audubon Society. The lawsuit was over the loss of habitat for Chinook salmon, and the settlement called for the river to be ready for the reintroduction of salmon by the end of 2012.

While the lawsuit and restoration plan centered on salmon, restoration of the San Joaquin will be good for a wide range of wildlife, including birds such as the Least Bell’s Vireo and the Yellow Warbler.

The Least Bell’s Vireo, an endangered neotropical migrant, was extirpated from the Central Valley in the 1970s. But in the last five years, individuals have been found at refuges where riparian habitat has been restored. Sixty miles of flowing river would mean a lot more habitat for them.

Least Bell's Vireo at nest / Photo by Moose Peterson, FWS
The Yellow Warbler, listed as a Species of Special Concern in California, today is found throughout its historic range — except in the Central Valley.  It relies on willows and shrubs, which don’t exist along a dried-up San Joaquin River but would flourish alongside a restored, flowing one.

Yellow Warbler / Photo by Bob Lewis

Sounds like with the restoration, the future is looking better for Central Valley salmon, birds and other wildlife, right?

But the project also faces some possible hurdles. It’s a couple of years behind schedule due to delays in getting the implementing legislation through Congress. And although the restoration plan guarantees a continued flow of water for agriculture, some Central Valley farmers feel it isn’t enough, especially in dry years.

Central Valley Republican congressmen have tried to derail the restoration, most recently through a bill (HR 1837)  that passed the House of Representatives but stalled in the Senate.

To keep the San Joaquin River restoration moving forward, our elected officials need to hear from us. 

Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer have been supportive of the project. But they’re hearing a lot of complaints from disgruntled farm interests. They need to hear from us — people who care about the river for wildlife, recreation, natural beauty and quality of life as well as for agriculture.

Audubon California is currently mounting an “I’m for the river” campaign. The goal is to send 8,000 postcards or emails supporting the restoration to elected officials by November.

Please take a moment to add your voice. Click here to go to the I’m for the river campaign site — it will allow you to contract all your elected representatives quickly and easily with a single email.

The San Joaquin restoration is important not just in itself, but because it is the largest river restoration project on the West Coast and has the potential to be a national model.

Want more info on the San Joaquin River and its future? The map below shows the 350-mile path of the river — starting in the Sierra peaks east of Fresno, continuing past Friant Dam, north through the Central Valley where it merges with the Tuolumne, Stanislaus and Merced rivers, and then finally to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

You can also check out:

  • I’m for the River by California Audubon
  • Recent Stockton Record editorial and Sacramento Bee editorial on jobs that will be created by the restoration
  • Aquafornia directory of news articles on the restoration
  • Technical documents from the government agencies managing the project

If we can keep this restoration on track… five years from now, Golden Gate Audubon may be able to schedule field trips to see Least Bell’s Vireos, Yellow Warblers, and many other birds along the banks of a flowing, flourishing San Joaquin River.

Etching of the San Joaquin River at night from before it was dammed and diverted in the 1940s

 

PrevPreviousBirding and personal safety
NextBay Area Birds, by David LukasNext
Facebook Instagram Youtube Twitter

Follow Golden Gate Birder by email

Click to follow our blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Subscribe

Loading...
A Day in the Life of a Climate-Friendly Birder
August 14, 2023
Lights out for Larry: The Burden of Brightness on Birds
August 8, 2023
Dotson Family Marsh− How We Got This Great Gift
July 27, 2023
How to Thrive as an SOB (Spouse of Birder)
June 28, 2023
The Berkeley-Stanford Birdathon
June 22, 2023
The Curious Case of Mama Kite
June 14, 2023
Birdathon 2023 Breaks Records
June 8, 2023
These Binoculars are Out of this World!
May 10, 2023
From the Sierras to the Mojave: A Search for the Yellow-Billed Cuckoo
May 3, 2023
The Golden Gate Gulls Go Birding
April 25, 2023

Our Mission

To inspire people to protect Bay Area birds and our shared natural environment.

Our Vision

A world where birds, wildlife, and all people flourish together.

Home page photo of a Bald Eagle by Rick Lewis. Home page photos rotate on an occasional basis. If you have a Bay Area bird photo you would like us to consider, email us at rnakano@goldengateaudubon.org.

Home page bird illustrations by Tex Buss. We are grateful for her generous donation of time and talent!

Facebook Instagram Youtube Twitter

Contact Us

Golden Gate Bird Alliance
2150 Allston Way Suite 210
Berkeley, California 94704

Phone: 510.843.2222

Office hours: Monday-Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Golden Gate Bird Alliance is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Our federal tax ID number is 94-6086896

Join Our Email List

Sign up to receive our eGull newsletter and get updates on other Golden Gate Bird Alliance news and opportunities!

Subscribe
© 2023 Golden Gate Bird Alliance | All Rights Reserved
All photos on this site belong to the photographers and may not be used without written permission.
  • About Us
    • About Our Staff
    • About Our Board
    • Our Commitment to Diversity
    • GGAS StrategicPlan
    • GGAS in the News
    • Job Opportunities
  • Education
    • Speaker Series
      • Past Speakers
    • Classes
      • Rotary Nature Center
    • Eco-Ed for Kids
  • Volunteer
  • Conservation
    • Bird-Friendly Coffee Club
  • GGAS Archives
    • The Gull Archives
    • GGAS Press Releases
    • Travel with GGAS – Past Tours
    • Past Speakers
  • Bird With Us
    • Field Trips
    • Travel with GGAS
    • SF Bay Ospreys
    • Christmas Bird Counts
    • The Gull
    • Golden Gate Birder Blog
      • Birdathon 2021
    • Corporate Partnerships
    • Member Login
    • Trip Reports by Year
    • Contact Us
      • Join/Renew
      • Other Ways to Give
      • Planned Giving
    • Member Login
    • Volunteer Hours Reporting
    • Birding Resources
      • Conservation Info
  • Blog
  • Donate