River in California, United States
The
Petaluma River
is a river in the
California
counties of
Sonoma
and
Marin
[1]
that becomes a tidal
slough
for most of its length. The headwaters are in the area southwest of
Cotati
. The flow is generally southward through
Petaluma's
old town, where the waterway becomes navigable, and then flows another 10 mi (16 km) through
tidal marshes
before emptying into the northwest corner of
San Pablo Bay
.
History
[
edit
]
The word Petaluma may derive from the
Miwok
words
pe’ta
, flat, and
luma
, back. The Miwok people lived in Sonoma County for more than 2500 years. Petaluma was the name of a village on a low hill east of Petaluma creek and north east of the present day town of Petaluma.
The first recorded exploration of the Petaluma River was by Captain Fernando Quiros in October, 1776. While other members of his Spanish expedition collected adobe and timber for the new
Presidio of San Francisco
and for the
Mission San Francisco de Asis
(Mission Dolores), Quiros and his sailors tried unsuccessfully to sail from San Pablo Bay to Bodega Bay.
[2]
Petaluma River was named Petaluma Creek until the early 1960s.
[3]
Petaluma River Watershed
[
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]
Located in southern Sonoma County, California, and a portion of northeastern
Marin
, the Petaluma River Watershed drains 146 square miles (380 km
2
).
[4]
The watershed is approximately 19 miles (31 km) long and 13 miles (21 km) wide with the City of Petaluma near its center. At 2,295 feet (700 m),
Sonoma Mountain
is the highest point in the watershed, and its western slopes drain to the Petaluma River by way of tributaries such as
Lichau Creek
,
Lynch Creek
,
Washington Creek
, and
Adobe Creek
. The lower 12 miles (19 km) of the Petaluma River flow through the Petaluma Marsh, the largest remaining salt marsh in San Pablo Bay. The marsh covers 5,000 acres (20 km
2
) and is surrounded by approximately 7,000 acres (28 km
2
) of reclaimed wetlands.
[4]
In the marshes west of
Lakeville
, the river is joined by
San Antonio Creek
, at which point it becomes the boundary between Marin County and Sonoma County. The river flows under
State Route 37
at Green Point and enters northwest San Pablo Bay just north of Petaluma Point.
While the river's source lies over 300 ft (100 m) above
sea level
, it descends to 50 ft (15 m) within about 0.4 mi (600 m). The river is fully tidal 11 mi (18 km) from its mouth, indicating its slight
gradient
through the marshes below Petaluma. The
United States Army Corps of Engineers
dredges
this section to keep it
navigable
by gravel
barges
and pleasure craft.
Ecology
[
edit
]
The Petaluma River Watershed hosts several federally endangered animals including the
salt marsh harvest mouse
(
Reithrodontomys raviventris
), the
North American river otter
(
Lontra canadensis
), and
Ridgway's rail
(
Rallus obsoletus
). Endangered flora include soft bird’s-beak (
Cordylanthus mollis
ssp.
mollis
), Baker’s stickyseed (
Blennosperma bakeri
), Burke’s goldfields (
Lasthenia burkei
),
showy Indian clover
(
Trifolium amoenum
), and
Sebastopol meadowfoam
(
Limnanthes vinculans
).
[4]
Steelhead
(
Oncorhyncus mykiss
) that spawn and rear in the Petaluma River watershed are wild, not hatchery, stock.
[5]
Chinook salmon
(
Oncorhynchus tshawytscha
) are seen in the main stem of the Petaluma River and The United Anglers of Casa Grande High School have seen chinook at the
turning basin
, near the Lynch Creek confluence. The high school students constructed a salmonid hatchery in 1993
[6]
and in 2002 74 Chinook salmon returned to spawn in the
Adobe Creek
tributary.
[7]
Habitat and pollution
[
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]
The
marshes
provide an important wildlife habitat and
fish hatchery
. However, since the onset of intensive immigration in the mid-1850s, the
water quality
has diminished, partly due to
overgrazing
and other
agricultural
uses.
Pollutants
present in the river include
nitrates
,
phosphates
, petroleum
hydrocarbons
,
pesticides
and
sediment
.
[8]
Urban runoff
, particularly from the City of Petaluma, adds
heavy metals
and hydrocarbons to the river.
[9]
Starting about 1990, material steps were taken to mitigate the pollution.
Because the Petaluma River is relatively well-protected, most of the pollution comes from nearby storm drains. It is up to the people of Petaluma to keep the river clean.
Because most of the length of the waterway is tidal and urban/suburban, there is a significant collection of tidally deposited debris along the banks. Despite the poor aesthetics including turbidity, the water quality is not particularly poor.
[10]
It has been alleged that the greatest threat to the Petaluma River is the planned Dutra asphalt plant. The reported concerns involve the "loud noises it will create" that will scare away the birds and "throw off the entire ecosystem".
[11]
Bridges
[
edit
]
The following
bridges
span the Petaluma River moving upstream from San Pablo Bay through Petaluma: the
Black Point Railroad Bridge
(NWP),
California State Route 37
,
Haystack Landing Bridge
(NWP),
U.S. 101
, D Street, Washington Street, Lakeville Street, NWP, Payran Street, NWP, Oak Drive, Corona Road, Petaluma Boulevard North, and Rainsville Road.
[12]
The longest highway span, the 4-lane Route 37 bridge, is 2,183 ft (665 m) long and was built in 1958. The oldest public bridge, built in 1925, is a 114 ft (35 m) concrete triple span carrying two lanes of Petaluma Boulevard North.
[13]
Removal and replacement of the U.S. Route 101 highway bridge over the river began in 2013. The existing bridge was an 866 feet long, twin reinforced concrete
box girder bridge
(with a pre-cast I girder span over the river) that was built in 1955. It had two lanes of traffic in each direction, limited sight lines, and no shoulders. The new bridge is a 907 feet long,
precast
, post-tensioned spliced concrete girder design with three lanes of traffic in each direction and standard shoulders.
[14]
Construction completed in mid-2016.
[15]
See also
[
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]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Petaluma River
- ^
Adair Heig (1982).
History of Petaluma, A California River Town
. San Francisco, California: Scottwall Associates.
- ^
"PETALUMA RIVER, CA | USGS Store"
.
store.usgs.gov
. Retrieved
May 2,
2024
.
- ^
a
b
c
The Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District (July 1999).
Petaluma Watershed Enhancement Plan
(Report). The State Water Resources Control Board
. Retrieved
June 24,
2010
.
- ^
Prunuske Chatham, Inc. (February 1999).
Fisheries Enhancement Opportunities in the Petaluma River Watershed
(PDF)
(Report). Southern Sonoma County Resource Conservation District
. Retrieved
June 24,
2010
.
- ^
Malcolm MacConnell (1999).
"Miracle at Adobe Creek"
.
Reader's Digest
. Archived from
the original
on July 5, 2010
. Retrieved
June 24,
2010
.
- ^
"Project Highlights"
. United Anglers of Casa Grande High School. 2001. Archived from
the original
on July 5, 2010
. Retrieved
June 24,
2010
.
- ^
"Petaluma River Water Quality Profile"
(PDF)
.
ca.gov
. Retrieved
April 10,
2018
.
- ^
Kay Ransom, C. Michael Hogan, Ballard George et al.,
Environmental Impact Report for the Petaluma General Plan
, prepared by Earth Metrics Inc. for the city of Petaluma (1986)
- ^
California, City of Petaluma IT Division, State of.
"Petaluma"
.
cityofpetaluma.net
. Retrieved
April 10,
2018
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link
)
- ^
"Stop the New Dutra Asphalt Plant in Petaluma"
.
nopetalumaasphaltplant.com
. Retrieved
April 10,
2018
.
- ^
Sonoma County Street Guide and Directory
.
Irvine, California
:
Thomas Brothers Maps
. 1994. pp.
176, 183, 184, 191, 192, 196, 197&199
.
ISBN
0-88130-738-6
.
- ^
"National Bridge Inventory Database"
.
- ^
"Caltrans District 4 | MSN 101 Petaluma Blvd South Interchange and Petaluma Bridge Project Interstate 116 Interchange Project"
. June 9, 2013. Archived from
the original
on June 9, 2013
. Retrieved
June 7,
2023
.
- ^
"Birders hopeful for return of swallows to Petaluma bridge"
.
Petaluma Argus-Courier
. March 25, 2016
. Retrieved
June 7,
2023
.
External links
[
edit
]
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Outline
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Subdivisions
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Waterways
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Parks and
protected areas
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Islands and
peninsulas
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Wetlands
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Bridges
and tubes
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Ferries
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Ports and
marinas
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Other
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