Friant-Kern Canal

The Friant-Kern Canal is a 152 mi (245 km) aqueduct managed by the United States Bureau of Reclamation in Central California to convey water to augment irrigation capacity in Fresno, Tulare, and Kern counties.

In the past few years canal flows have been reduced due to river restoration projects requiring a greater release of water from the Friant Dam into the San Joaquin.

Friant-Kern canal combats issues such as subsidence by providing water from the wetter northernmost part of the state to incentivize farmers to pump less groundwater.

The entire project consisted of 20 dams and reservoirs which collectively store about 12 million acre feet of water.

Along with depleted stream flows, the dam itself serves as a blockade against salmon traveling upstream in search of appropriate spawning grounds.

Due to the diversion of water, dry reaches of riverbed are reported along some portions of the San Joaquin River.

With dry riverbeds and salmon populations suffering, a lawsuit was filed which led to a settlement urging restoration of the river.

The FWA estimates that current construction aimed towards fixing the subsidence problem will reduce the delivery of class 2 supplies by about 100,000 acre feet/year.

To minimize any possible negative affects to biological resources, construction will occur when canal flows are low enough to avoid in-water work.

Farmers who are trying to cut back on water usage by using micro irrigation technology are especially susceptible to clogging by these weeds.