Spring Creek Reservoir (California) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Spring Creek Reservoir |
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 Spring Creek Reservoir
Location in California
Spring Creek Reservoir
Location in the United States
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| Location | Shasta-Trinity National Forest Shasta County, California |
| Coordinates | 40°37′47″N 122°28′27″W / 40.6298°N 122.4741°W |
| Type | Reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Spring Creek |
| Primary outflows | Spring Creek |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Max. length | .5 km (0.31 mi) |
| Max. width | .25 km (0.16 mi) |
| Water volume | 5,870 acre⋅ft (7,240,000 m3) |
| Shore length1 | 2 km (1.2 mi) |
| Surface elevation | 245 m (804 ft) |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
The Spring Creek Reservoir is a special artificial lake in Shasta County, California. It was created by building the Spring Creek Dam across Spring Creek. This reservoir is located inside the beautiful Shasta-Trinity National Forest, very close to a place called Keswick.
What is Spring Creek Reservoir For?
The main job of the Spring Creek Reservoir is to help control floods. It holds back water when there's a lot of rain. This helps protect areas downstream from getting flooded. The reservoir can hold a huge amount of water, about 5,870 acre⋅ft (7,240,000 m3). However, it's usually not completely full. During dry times, the water in Spring Creek just forms a small pond behind the dam.
Keeping the Water Clean
For a long time, the water in the reservoir had some pollution from old mining activities. This made the water quite acidic. To fix this, engineers had to be very careful. They would release water from the reservoir only when there was enough clean water flowing from the Shasta Dam upstream. This clean water would help wash away the polluted water.
Challenges and Solutions
Even with careful planning, the reservoir sometimes struggled to handle heavy storms. A single big storm could fill it up completely. When this happened, water would spill over the dam's top, which didn't have gates to control the flow. This caused problems for fish in the Sacramento River. For example, in 1969, many fish were harmed because of these sudden spills.
But good news! Things have changed. Now, thanks to efforts like the Iron Mountain Treatment Plant, the water in Spring Creek Reservoir is much cleaner. It is no longer polluted with mine waste or acidic. This means the reservoir is now a safer and healthier place for the environment.
