Millerton Lake 4.85

Millerton Lake is an artificial lake near the town of Friant about 15mi north of downtown Fresno. The reservoir was created by the construction of Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River which, with the lake, serves as much of the county line between Fresno County to the south and Madera County to the north.Part of the Central Valley Project, the dam was built by the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and was completed in 1942. The lake stores water for irrigation, which is distributed by the Madera and Friant-Kern Canals to the San Joaquin Valley. It has a capacity of 520528acre.ft.Secondary uses include flood control and recreation, including swimming, fishing, water skiing and camping. A 25 MW hydroelectric plant operated by the Friant Power Authority produces electricity from large releases and two smaller plants use water released for a fish hatchery and to maintain minimum-flow in the river.