Endangered River: Images of the San Joaquin

News
By published

San Joaquin

San Joaquin river near Stockton

(Image credit: Sarah Craig)

San Joaquin

Sacramento and the San Joaquin

(Image credit: Patrick Kelly)

The San Joaquin River flowing near Sacramento, Calif.

Dry San Joaquin

San Joaquin river runs dry

(Image credit: Christopher Beaver, Tales of the San Joaquin)

More than 100 miles (160 kilometers) of the San Joaquin runs dry, according to American Rivers.

California Aquaduct

California aquaduct

(Image credit: Allison Jones, nowater-nolife.org)

The California aquaduct. About 80 percent of the state's water diversions go to agriculture.

California Irrigation

California irrigation canal

(Image credit: Alison Jones, nowater-nolife.org)

An irrigation canal in California. Diversions take more than 70 percent of the San Joaquin's flow, according to American Rivers.

Dry Canal

irrigation canal dry in California

(Image credit: Alison Jones, nowater-nolife.org)

California's current drought is exacerbating water management problems. Here, a dry irrigation canal.

Drying San Joaquin

San joaquin river drying up

(Image credit: Alison Jones, nowater-nolife.org)

The San Joaquin slows to a trickle near San Mateo Road in the Bay Area.

Drying San Joaquin Bed

San Joaquin river drying

(Image credit: Alison Jones, nowater-nolife.org)

A view of the drying San Joaquin riverbed near San Mateo Road.

San Joaquin Diversions

San Joaquin river diversions

(Image credit: Sara Larsen)

Diversions from the San Joaquin River near Stockton, Calif.

San Joaquin and the Bay Delta

san joaquin river and development

(Image credit: Sarah Craig)

The San Joaquin River snakes through development in the Bay Delta region.

Stephanie Pappas
Stephanie Pappas
Live Science Contributor

Stephanie Pappas is a contributing writer for Live Science, covering topics ranging from geoscience to archaeology to the human brain and behavior. She was previously a senior writer for Live Science but is now a freelancer based in Denver, Colorado, and regularly contributes to Scientific American and The Monitor, the monthly magazine of the American Psychological Association. Stephanie received a bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of South Carolina and a graduate certificate in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.