Talk:Yakima River

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I think the article should mention the original name of the river, Tap Teel, or Tâpetêtt., 29 June, 2008. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.113.23.10 (talk) 19:23, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

Why is there a photo of an irrigation ditch in the Yakima River article? I think that no photo is better than an misleading photo. Cacophony 00:16, Oct 25, 2004 (UTC)

Two reasons: 1. this article doubles as an article about the Yakima River Valley, and 2. It was placed there by someone who thought it was the Yakima River. I didn't delete it at the time, because having a picture from the Yakima Valley is useful -- RobLa 06:44, 25 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Regarding citations needed for Yakima River pollution

I am sorry if I'm doing this wrong. I'm a newbee. I tried to follow the directions, but I didn't really get it. I was looking for directions on how to "post" to this talk page. "Posting" is what most people call it.

Anyway here are my comments about Yakima River: 1. There are some Tri-City Herald articles from 10 years ago who you could quote. a. http://www.ecy.wa.gov/news/1997news/97-143.html b. http://archive.tri-cityherald.com/yakima/day1/story3.html c. http://archive.tri-cityherald.com/yakima/day2/story1.html

2. BUT, that was 10 years ago and may no longer be relevant or if used should be noted as being 10 years old. A lot of it looked like a bunch of hype to get people frightened about the extent of the pollution. No doubt there is pollution but the articles focus more on public opinion and hearsay rather than on fact. I'd be very interested to know how much has changed in the last 10 years. Zyzyxs (talk) 17:35, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

Geological History

The paragraph for which "Navarro, Mateo. "Geologist"." is cited as the source is either badly incorrect or very unclear. (I realize that I am incorporating "original research" here, but the current section is of a very similar nature -- perhaps we can Talk about how to get it right.) To start with, the citation is not a published written work, but merely a Wikipedia editor's recollection of what he thought a geologist had said.

In particular, Badger Canyon does not lead west from the Yakima River Valley to the Pacific Ocean. It is an errosional feature which runs downward to the east/north from the Horse Heaven, an elevated feature of igneous bedrock which rises westward to the Cascade Mountains. Badger Canyon does not cross the Horse Heaven, but merely drains a small portion of it. This is obvious to anyone who has ever driven down (or up) Badger Canyon.

Starting at about Prosser, and continuing to Benton City, the Yakima River flows between the Horse Heaven, to the south, and the Rattlesnake Mountains (a line of anticlinal ridges), to the North. At Benton City, the river doubles back, and then flows between two of the Rattlesnake Mountains: Rattlesnake Mountain and Red Mountain. The Yakima River then flows east into the Columbia, following the north side of the Rattlesnake Mountains past Red Mountain, Candy Mountain and Badger Mountain. Perhaps the geologist named Mateo Navarro was referring to the synclinal valley between Badger Mountain and the Horse Heaven as "Badger Canyon" (or was misunderstood as referring to Badger "Canyon"). It certainly seems sensible that the Yakima River may have once flowed east through this synclinal valley before a bunch of recent sedimentation blocked its path, but Badger Canyon is just out of the question.

Near its eastern terminus, the Horse Heaven is often known as the Horse Heaven Hills -- to the west, it is mountainously high, tilted upward to the west, but nearly flat on top.

Could someone please find a reference work on the pre-historic course of the Yakima River and fix the main article?

128.84.183.171 (talk) 19:19, 24 February 2016 (UTC)

• Always start with looking for a Water Supply Paper. This one has maps and history.
  • Parker, Glenn L.; Storey, Frank B. (1916). Water powers of the Cascade Range, part III. Yakima River Basin. Water Supply Paper. Vol. 369. United States Geological Survey. doi:10.3133/wsp369.
• Uncle G (talk) 04:37, 21 February 2024 (UTC)

Scope for expansion

• Pfaff, Christine (December 2001). Harvest of plenty : a history of the Yakima Irrigation Project, Washington. Denver, Colorado: United States Bureau of Reclamation Upper Columbia Area Office. OCLC 49390736.
• Dick, Timothy A. (1993). Yakima Project. United States Bureau of Reclamation.
• Kershner, Jim (2020-01-23). "Large-scale irrigation of the Yakima Valley commences when water gushes into the Sunnyside Canal for the first time on March 26, 1892". HistoryLink. 20956.
• Russell, Israel Cook (1893). A geological reconnoissance in central Washington. Bulletin. Vol. 108. Washington, D.C.: United States Geological Service. doi:10.3133/b108.

For 60 years, the Bureau of Reclamation ran its Yakima Project, which involves canals, tunnels, reservoirs, pumps, and substations all along the Yakima Valley, and is related to the earlier artesian wells in the Moxee Valley. It's extensively documented throughout those years; Pfaff's book being but a place to start. Things to mention should also include the decades-long fight by one Native American tribe to restore the water rights that were taken away from it by executive decision and only returned after a court battle, and Frank Crowe working on one of the Project's dams. We really should cover this somewhere, possibly starting in the "River modifications" section here in this article.

Uncle G (talk) 04:28, 21 February 2024 (UTC)