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Banner May 22, 2014

Your Online Water Encyclopedia

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Overview February 11, 2014

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Aquapedia background February 11, 2014 Lakes

Lake Tahoe

World-renowned for its crystal clear, azure water, Lake Tahoe straddles the Nevada-California border, stretching 22 miles long and 12 miles wide and hemmed in by Sierra Nevada peaks.

At 1,645 feet deep, Tahoe is the second-deepest lake in the United States and the 10th deepest in the world. The iconic lake sits 6,225 feet above sea level.

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Tailwater

Excess surface water from land under cultivation, or water below a dam or hydropower development.

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John R. Teerink

John R. Teerink (1921-1992) was the director of the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) from 1973-1975 during Governor Ronald Reagan’s administration.He had various lead roles in the implementation of the State Water Project during his 29-year career at DWR. He progressed through the ranks as junior engineer, assistant chief engineer and then deputy director until his appointment to head the department.

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Tehama-Colusa and Corning Canals

The Tehama-Colusa and Corning canals receive water from the Red Bluff Diversion Dam.

That water is then used to irrigate the west side of the Sacramento Valley as part of the federal Central Valley Project.

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Tidal Excursions

Mixing of waters caused by daily tidal movements in and out of an estuary.

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Transpiration

Process by which plants release water vapor to the atmosphere through the pores of their leaves.

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Tributaries

A tributary of the Feather River.A tributary is a river or stream that enters a larger body of water, especially a lake or river. The receiving water into which a tributary feeds is called the “mainstem,” and the point where they come together is referred to as the “confluence.”

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Trihalomethanes (THMs)

Trihalomethanes are the most common type of “disinfection byproduct,” which is a substance created from the treatment of water with organic matter.

How They Form

Chlorine is the most popular water disinfectant, used widely since the beginning of the 20th century to kill viruses and microorganisms in water. It has had a major role in significantly reducing global instances of cholera and typhoid given its effectiveness and relatively low cost. 

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Aquapedia background February 11, 2014 Dams Shasta Dam

Trinity Dam and Trinity River

Though seemingly a long-way from California’s Central Valley, the Trinity Dam helps supply irrigation water for Valley farmers and for hydropower production.

Constructed in the far northwest of California in the 1950s, Trinity Dam and Lewiston Dam, just downstream, increased the storage capacity of the federal Central Valley Project by more than 2.5 million acre-feet.

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Truckee River
Aquapedia background February 11, 2014

Truckee River

From it headwaters high in California’s Sierra Nevada, the Truckee River flows into and through Lake Tahoe, continuing down the Truckee River canyon to the Reno metropolitan area and then across miles of Nevada high desert before flowing into Pyramid Lake, 40 miles northeast of Reno.

The river’s 145-mile course takes it from alpine forests to high desert sagebrush. (The portion of the Truckee that begins in California in the Sierra Nevada and flows into Lake Tahoe is called the Upper Truckee River.)

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Tulare Lake Basin

Until the early 1900s, central California’s Tulare Lake naturally appeared every winter as the southernmost rivers flowing out of the Sierra Nevada Mountains filled the dry lakebed with rainfall and melted snow.

In the spring, the shallow lake could be larger in area than Lake Tahoe. By the end of the hot San Joaquin Valley summer, however, it could disappear.

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Tuolumne River

The Tuolumne River is one of the major tributaries draining the western Sierra Nevada.

Beginning high in the mountains of Yosemite at 13,000 feet, the Tuolumne River forms at Mt. Lyell, flows through Tuolumne Meadows, and cascades through canyons including the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne , as it descends 150 miles into the San Joaquin Valley. There, the Tuolumne empties into the San Joaquin River. The water helps irrigate the agriculturally-rich region, particularly Stanislaus County. The dam at Don Pedro Reservoir near Turlock is also used to generate electricity.

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