Clean Water from the Tuolumne River
Hetch Hetchy is on the main stem of the Tuolumne River and is part of the Tuolumne watershed. The Tuolumne River originates in the peaks above Tuolumne Meadows and is the major drainage system for the northern part of Yosemite. The Tuolumne River continues through Tuolumne Meadows and the associated park developments at an elevation of 8,600 feet. It then cascades on its westward descent through the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne, and enters the eastern end of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. Hetch Hetchy is dammed by the 430-foot-tall O’Shaughnessy Dam and has a storage capacity of 360,360 acre-feet. It is the primary water source for about 2.7 million residents of the San Francisco Bay Area.
