405:
377:, an attorney who was a key architect of the MWD and its business relationships with member water agencies. Construction on the reservoir began in 1933, while the aqueduct was being built across the desert. The reservoir site had previously been occupied chiefly by carob orchards and tin mines. Lawrence Holmes, Sr., who owned 1,100 acres in the future reservoir basin, lost his property to eminent domain in a lengthy court battle. The dam across Cajalco Canyon and its intake structure were completed in 1939
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Jeffries withdrew the bill on March 20, 2012 after research determined that "virtually bulletproof" agreements prohibiting public access exist between the MWD and other entities interested in maintaining the status quo, and going forward with the bill would have likely resulted in prolonged and expensive legal battles.
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In the mid-2000s, a large project was undertaken to rehabilitate the old outlet tower and construct a new tower as an alternative. The MWD was concerned about the tower's susceptibility to earthquakes, and age had rendered many of the tower's massive valves unusable. To allow for construction without
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In 2003, the
California State Water Resources Control Board found the MWD's interruption of Cajalco Creek water to be in violation of state water code. An out-of-court settlement was reached where MWD would monitor the quantity of water entering Lake Mathews from the creek and release 1.3 times that
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California
Assemblyman Kevin Jeffries, on February 14, 2012, introduced legislation, AB 1686, which would have opened the lake for limited recreation similar to that available at other MWD reservoirs or, at the very least, have allowed for low-impact hiking in the Ecological Reserve. However,
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Since its dedication in 1940, the reservoir has been fenced off and closed to public access, supposedly to preserve water quality. The MWD has always been concerned about water quality and prohibits body contact sports like swimming in its other nearby reservoirs that are open for recreation,
412:
Lake
Mathews is surrounded by approximately 4,000 acres of protected land. In 1982, this land was declared a state ecological reserve. In the early 1990s, an additional 9,000 acres was added to the reserve after the discovery of the endangered
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would have featured, among other things, a smoke-belching volcano constructed on one of the lake's islands. After their idea was rejected by the MWD board, the movie's producers reportedly constructed a lagoon and volcano on a studio backlot.
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During its existence, a number of attempts have been made to gain access to the lake for various purposes, but none have been granted. One of the most interesting was a 1952 request for a movie shoot at the lake. The scene from the 1953 movie
388:. The first water arrived from the Colorado River in February 1940, and water deliveries began in 1941. In 1961, the reservoir's capacity was nearly doubled to its current capacity of 182,000 acre-feet.
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Board of
Supervisors mounted an unsuccessful campaign to open the lake for recreational purposes. The board generated a resolution citing a "pressing and definite need" for recreational facilities in
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524:. Mathews is of greatest importance as its outlet feeds directly into pipelines that connect to member water agencies serving 8.4 million people.
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amount, minus dam seepage, into the Santa Ana River. In addition, MWD was ordered to contribute $ 50,000 to aid in the removal of non-native
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The Lake
Mathews area is an important bird resting and feeding site, particularly in the winter months. In addition to a variety of ducks,
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488:. The original course of the creek, before 1933, can be seen on the US Dept. of the Interior's 1898 topographic map of the
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Kathleen Dever and Judy
Whitson, Lake Mathews And Gavilan Hills, Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, 2007, pp.39-100
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323:(MWD). The reservoir is fenced and closed to all public access. The lake is near the Riverside community of
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was constructed. Massive concrete tunnels were built to connect the new tower to the existing waterworks.
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dam across the northern side of the basin. Two smaller dams, called dikes, were built during the 1961
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that provides much of the water used by the cities and water districts of the
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granted in 1846 to María del
Rosario Estudillo de Aguirre, a member of the
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U.S. Geological Survey
Geographic Names Information System: Cajalco Canyon
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Originally named the
Cajalco Reservoir, the reservoir is now named after
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U.S. Geological Survey
Geographic Names Information System: Lake Mathews
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Pipelines to member water agencies in the greater Los Angeles area
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1901 Elsinore Quadrangle, CA topographic Map, reprinted in 1941.
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several small islands; number present depends on reservoir level
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Lake Mathews, East of Route 15, Riverside, Riverside County, CA
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Lake Mathews was constructed in a basin formerly traversed by
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CA State Water Resources Control Board, Order 2003-0019-EXEC
40:
A view of Lake Mathews from behind the fenced boundary
357:Lake Mathews is located on land originally part of
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827:Historic American Engineering Record in California
330:The reservoir was constructed by building a large
321:Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
214:Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
754:"Residents' Association of Greater Lake Mathews"
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579:
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8:
793:", 12 photos, 1 photo caption page
345:expansion to increase the lake's capacity.
807:Reservoirs in Riverside County, California
617:MWD People Interactive Magazine, June 2002
25:
558:List of dams and reservoirs in California
16:Reservoir in Riverside County, California
635:Riverside County Integrated Project page
822:United States local public utility dams
573:
659:from lib.utexas.edu, accessed 6/6/2015
315:. It is the western terminus for the
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787:Historic American Engineering Record
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711:TCM notes page on Fair Wind to Java
507:) from the Santa Ana River course.
464:), are present during the winter.
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847:Reservoirs in Southern California
837:1938 establishments in California
511:Controversy over recreational use
832:Infrastructure completed in 1938
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468:Effects on Santa Ana River flow
400:Lake Mathews Ecological Reserve
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259:Approx. 14 mi (23 km)
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251:182,000 acre-feet (224 hm)
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243:Approx. 150 ft (46 m)
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392:impacting the water supply, a
363:Estudillo family of California
1:
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102:Show map of the United States
19:For the populated place, see
305:Riverside County, California
116:Riverside County, California
563:List of lakes in California
359:Rancho San Jacinto Sobrante
863:
288:not a well-defined measure
267:1,391 ft (424 m)
18:
789:(HAER) No. CA-247, "
438:Aechmophorus occidentalis
426:double-crested cormorants
408:Lake Mathews from the air
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45:
33:
842:Reservoirs in California
462:Haliaeatus leucocephalus
379: (85 years ago)
336: (63 years ago)
311:in the foothills of the
21:Lake Mathews, California
723:"MWD Document Archives"
681:"MWD Document Archives"
415:Stephens's kangaroo rat
317:Colorado River Aqueduct
235:2 mi (3.2 km)
227:4 mi (6.4 km)
181:Colorado River Aqueduct
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370:
72:Show map of California
646:BioHere.com data page
430:Phalacrocorax auritus
407:
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482:Cajalco Canyon Creek
367:José Antonio Aguirre
145:33.8403°N 117.4352°W
542:Southern California
522:Diamond Valley Lake
419:Dipodomys stephensi
141: /
817:Dams in California
812:Temescal Mountains
622:2014-09-03 at the
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313:Temescal Mountains
150:33.8403; -117.4352
530:Fair Wind to Java
454:Aquila chrysaetos
446:Podiceps caspicus
307:, located in the
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264:Surface elevation
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434:western grebe
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768:. Retrieved
761:the original
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695:. Retrieved
688:the original
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518:Lake Skinner
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505:Arundo donax
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375:W.B. Mathews
372:
365:and wife of
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297:Lake Mathews
296:
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256:Shore length
248:Water volume
96:Lake Mathews
66:Lake Mathews
29:Lake Mathews
458:bald eagles
442:eared grebe
299:is a large
224:Max. length
148: /
136:117°26′07″W
123:Coordinates
801:Categories
770:2012-07-06
739:2012-07-06
697:2012-07-06
569:References
493:Quadrangle
325:Lake Hills
232:Max. width
133:33°50′25″N
394:cofferdam
332:earthfill
301:reservoir
167:reservoir
620:Archived
552:See also
490:Elsinore
112:Location
503:grass (
456:), and
382: (
349:History
339: (
277:Islands
501:arundo
764:(PDF)
757:(PDF)
733:(PDF)
726:(PDF)
691:(PDF)
684:(PDF)
484:into
200:Basin
520:and
480:via
384:1939
341:1961
162:Type
448:),
440:),
432:),
303:in
803::
576:^
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773:.
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460:(
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444:(
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428:(
417:(
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23:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
