Reclamation District No. 1606

Reclamation District No. 1606 was formed in 1914. The District was formed to provide flood protection to its landowners, primarily by constructing two levees that allowed Kings River flood waters to bypass the protected area to the east and west.

The District includes approximately 18,520 acres (28.94 square miles). It is located in central Fresno County. It encompasses the City of San Joaquin and surrounding lands extending from the Fresno Slough on the south to the Fresno Slough Bypass on the north.

The District owns and maintains the Fresno Slough and Fresno Slough Bypass, including the levees protecting these facilities to convey Kings River floodwater and local storm water. There is livestock grazing and limited farming on District lands. Through a contract with the U. S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, the District obtains and provides water to about 170 acres of District property. District facilities are utilized by the James Irrigation District for regulating reservoirs and for groundwater recharge.

The District is governed by a three-member Board of Trustees elected at-large who meet quarterly on the third Thursday of March, June, September, and December at 10:00 a.m.

Reclamation District No. 1606’s western properties recharging the groundwater aquifer with flood flows June 2023