San Diego Creek

San Diego Creek
San Diego Creek at Alton Parkway in Irvine
Map of the Newport Bay watershed, with San Diego Creek highlighted
Location
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
RegionOrange County
Physical characteristics
SourceSanta Ana Mountains
 • locationEl Toro, Lake Forest
 • coordinates33°38′28″N 117°41′03″W / 33.64111°N 117.68417°W / 33.64111; -117.68417
 • elevation700 ft (210 m)
MouthUpper Newport Bay
 • location
Near University of California Irvine
 • coordinates
33°38′55″N 117°52′28″W / 33.64861°N 117.87444°W / 33.64861; -117.87444
 • elevation
0 ft (0 m)
Length15 mi (24 km)
Basin size112.2 sq mi (291 km2)
Discharge 
 • locationCampus Drive at Irvine, CA
 • average61 cu ft/s (1.7 m3/s)
 • minimum0 cu ft/s (0 m3/s)
 • maximum43,500 cu ft/s (1,230 m3/s)
Basin features
Tributaries 
 • leftLa Cañada Wash, San Joaquin Wash, Bonita Creek
 • rightBee Canyon Wash, Peters Canyon Wash

San Diego Creek is a 16-mile (26 km) urban waterway flowing into Upper Newport Bay in Orange County, California, United States.[1] Its watershed covers 112.2 square miles (291 km2) in parts of eight cities, including Irvine, Tustin, and Costa Mesa.[2] From its headwaters in Laguna Woods the creek flows northwest to its confluence with Peters Canyon Wash, where it turns abruptly southwest towards the bay. Most of the creek has been converted to a concrete flood control channel, but it also provides important aquatic and riparian habitat along its course and its tidal estuary.[3]

The watershed is heavily urbanized with master planned residential and commercial development. It accounts for 80 percent of the whole Newport Bay watershed, which has an urban population of over 700,000.[4] There is also agriculture, high-tech industry and 15,700 acres (64 km2) of designated open space. Orange County Great Park (formerly El Toro Marine Corps Air Station), one of the largest urban parks in the US, is also situated in the watershed.[5]

  1. ^ "San Diego Creek". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2009-06-18.
  2. ^ "Introduction to San Diego Creek Watershed". Watershed and Coastal Resources Division of Orange County. www.ocwatersheds.com. Archived from the original on 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2009-06-18.
  3. ^ "San Diego Creek Watershed - Reports and Studies". Watershed and Coastal Resources Division of Orange County. www.ocwatersheds.com. Archived from the original on 2002-10-25. Retrieved 2009-06-18.
  4. ^ "Orange County, California - Central OC Watershed Management Area".
  5. ^ "San Diego Creek Watershed - Land Use". Watershed and Coastal Resources Division of Orange County. www.ocwatersheds.com. Archived from the original on 2008-05-17. Retrieved 2009-06-18.