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29-542: The river proper begins with the merging of three main tributaries , namely the North Fork, Middle Fork and South Fork, near Deming . All three forks originate in the Mount Baker Wilderness , and the North Fork, the longest of the three, is sometimes considered the main river. The Nooksack is approximately 75 miles (121 km) in total length measuring from the North Fork headwaters . The lower Nooksack flows as

58-597: A tripoint . Various examples are found in the list below. A number of major cities, such as Chongqing , St. Louis , and Khartoum , arose at confluences; further examples appear in the list. Within a city, a confluence often forms a visually prominent point, so that confluences are sometimes chosen as the site of prominent public buildings or monuments, as in Koblenz , Lyon , and Winnipeg . Cities also often build parks at confluences, sometimes as projects of municipal improvement, as at Portland and Pittsburgh . In other cases,

87-515: A 1988 report that resulted in the cancellation of the Sage Creek coal mine on the Flathead River ". Confluence In geography , a confluence (also: conflux ) occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel . A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river ( main stem ); or where two streams meet to become

116-414: A confluence can be divided into six distinct features which are commonly called confluence flow zones (CFZ). These include The broader field of engineering encompasses a vast assortment of subjects which concern confluences. In hydraulic civil engineering , where two or more underground culverted / artificially buried watercourses intersect, great attention should be paid to the hydrodynamic aspects of

145-619: A confluence is an industrial site, as in Philadelphia or Mannheim . Often a confluence lies in the shared floodplain of the two rivers and nothing is built on it, for example at Manaus , described below. One other way that confluences may be exploited by humans is as sacred places in religions . Rogers suggests that for the ancient peoples of the Iron Age in northwest Europe, watery locations were often sacred, especially sources and confluences. Pre-Christian Slavic peoples chose confluences as

174-482: A corresponding shift in habitat characteristics." Another science relevant to the study of confluences is chemistry , because sometimes the mixing of the waters of two streams triggers a chemical reaction, particularly in a polluted stream. The United States Geological Survey gives an example: "chemical changes occur when a stream contaminated with acid mine drainage combines with a stream with near-neutral pH water; these reactions happen very rapidly and influence

203-698: A northerly loop through the fertile southern Fraser Lowland agricultural area before emptying into Bellingham Bay and, via the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Strait of Georgia , communicating with the Pacific Ocean . The North Fork Nooksack River rises at the Nooksack Cirque east of Mount Shuksan within the western part of North Cascades National Park in central Whatcom County . Gathering meltwater off East Nooksack Glacier , it flows generally west past north of Mount Baker . For most of its course, this fork

232-479: Is paralleled by State Route 542 (also called the Mount Baker Highway). The river picks up large creeks such as Price Creek, a short creek draining Price Lake; as well as Ruth Creek, before the uppermost highway bridge crosses it. At Nooksack Falls , the river flows through a narrow valley and drops freely 88 feet (27 m) into a deep rocky river canyon. The falls are viewable from the forested cover near

261-735: Is used to describe the meeting of tidal or other non-riverine bodies of water, such as two canals or a canal and a lake. A one-mile (1.6 km) portion of the Industrial Canal in New Orleans accommodates the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet Canal ; therefore those three waterways are confluent there. The term confluence can also apply to the process of merging or flowing together of other substance. For example, it may refer to

290-701: The Nooksack Indian Reservation , creating the Nooksack River proper . The traditional name of the North Fork in the Nooksack language is Chuw7álich ("the next point"). The Middle Fork Nooksack River, about 20 miles (32 km) long, originates on the southern slopes of Mount Baker near Baker Pass. It flows generally northwest between Mount Baker and Twin Sisters , and drains into the North Fork opposite Welcome , about 4.5 km (2.8 mi) northeast of

319-568: The Sumas Mountain and flowing past Everson and Lynden . Near Everson, the river is at risk of floods breaching the right bank, allowing flow into lower lands to the north, through Sumas River and into Canada. At Lynden the river turns southwest and, near Ferndale , south. Its mouth is at the north side of Bellingham Bay at the Lummi Indian Reservation , approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Bellingham . The river supplies

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348-520: The source of a river of a new name (such as the confluence of the Monongahela and Allegheny rivers, forming the Ohio River ); or where two separated channels of a river (forming a river island ) rejoin at the downstream end. The point of confluence where the channel flows into a larger body of water may be called the river mouth . Confluences are studied in a variety of sciences. Hydrology studies

377-459: The 1791 expedition of Francisco de Eliza . Narváez named it Seno Gaston . Bellingham, Washington holds a run and walk marathon along the Bellingham Bay. There are three marathon races to choose from including a full marathon, half marathon, 10k, and/or 5k. Bellingham Bay Marathon, BBM, is a Boston marathon qualifier. Furthermore, all BBM courses are USATF-certified. The Bellingham Bay marathon

406-543: The Bay. In addition, they put into consideration the land and water uses at state cleanup sites around Bellingham Bay. The pilot team is co-managed by the Department of Ecology and Port of Bellingham, with Ecology as the lead agency for the pilot program. The pilot team is carrying out the strategy for 12 priority sites around the bay, in the future. Furthermore, In early 2013, Ecology revised its Sediment Management Standards to establish

435-400: The characteristic flow patterns of confluences and how they give rise to patterns of erosion, bars, and scour pools. The water flows and their consequences are often studied with mathematical models . Confluences are relevant to the distribution of living organisms (i.e., ecology ) as well; "the general pattern [downstream of confluences] of increasing stream flow and decreasing slopes drives

464-542: The cliff edge. A small parking lot nearby contains a kiosk with information about the falls and a hydroelectric project. Continuing west, the North Fork receives several tributaries including Wells Creek , which joins the river at the base of the falls, and Glacier Creek and Canyon Creek, before the river turns briefly south. The Middle Fork and South Fork join the North Fork within a few miles of one another. The Middle Fork joins first, with its confluence opposite Welcome . The South Fork joins just southeast of Deming and

493-592: The confluence between the North and South Forks. The traditional name of the Middle Fork in the Nooksack language is Nuxwt’íqw’em ("always-murky water"). The South Fork Nooksack River, about 50 miles (80 km) long, rises in southern Whatcom County, east of Twin Sisters Mountain near Bell Pass and Lake Wiseman. It flows briefly south, entering Skagit County , then northwest to re-enter Whatcom County. It flows past

522-587: The form of structural bracing. The velocities and hydraulic efficiencies should be meticulously calculated and can be altered by integrating different combinations of geometries, components such a gradients, cascades and an adequate junction angle which is sympathetic to the direction of the watercourse’s flow to minimise turbulent flow, maximise evacuation velocity and to ultimately maximise hydraulic efficiency. Since rivers often serve as political boundaries, confluences sometimes demarcate three abutting political entities, such as nations, states, or provinces, forming

551-684: The merger of the flow of two glaciers . Bellingham Bay Bellingham Bay is a bay of the Salish Sea located in Washington State in the United States . It is separated from the Strait of Georgia on the west by the Lummi Peninsula, Portage Island , and Lummi Island . It is bordered on the east by Bellingham, Washington , to the south-east by the Chuckanut Mountains , and to

580-451: The nearby town of Glacier, Washington with hydroelectric power from a dam on the North Fork near Nooksack Falls. The Middle Fork was partially blocked with a diversion dam built by the City of Bellingham in the late 1950s for diverting water into Lake Whatcom , which supplies the city's drinking water. As of July 2020, this old water diversion system has been modified to remove the dam and restore

609-406: The new river delta has been an ongoing field of research regarding the new wetlands it has created. The river only resupplies the previous delta on Lummi Bay during high-flow conditions. The river is subject to flooding due to high rainfall amounts in the region and some of the deepest snow packs in the country. The Pineapple Express , a weather pattern that brings central Pacific wind and rain to

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638-715: The northwest, can sometimes catalyze flooding. For example, flooding in Everson occurred 14 times from to 1936 to 2003. Specific examples of floods are: Both the USA and Canada have faced long-term political hurdles to adequate flood prevention. "On the Washington side, there has been a reluctance to spend money to benefit Canada", and on the Canadian side, " B.C. has been reluctant to use the International Joint Commission following

667-424: The river channel for the benefit of critical salmon spawning habitat. In the late 19th century, most of the stream flow of the Nooksack River near its mouth flowed through the present channel of the short Lummi River to Lummi Bay, northwest of Bellingham Bay. Near the start of the 20th century, a log jam plugged the channel to Lummi Bay, forcing the river to change its channel to the present one. The accumulation of

696-448: The sites for fortified triangular temples, where they practiced human sacrifice and other sacred rites. In Hinduism , the confluence of two sacred rivers often is a pilgrimage site for ritual bathing. In Pittsburgh, a number of adherents to Mayanism consider their city's confluence to be sacred. Mississippi basin Atlantic watersheds Pacific watersheds Occasionally, "confluence"

725-624: The south by Samish Bay . The Nooksack River empties into the bay, as does Whatcom Creek . Bellingham Bay is named for Sir William Bellingham , who was controller of the storekeeper's account for the Royal Navy at the time that the Vancouver Expedition visited the bay in June 1792. The first European entry of the bay was by the Spanish schooner Santa Saturnina under José María Narváez , during

754-613: The subsequent transport of metals downstream of the mixing zone." A natural phenomenon at confluences that is obvious even to casual observers is a difference in color between the two streams; see images in this article for several examples. According to Lynch, "the color of each river is determined by many things: type and amount of vegetation in the watershed, geological properties, dissolved chemicals, sediments and biologic content – usually algae ." Lynch also notes that color differences can persist for miles downstream before they finally blend completely. Hydrodynamic behaviour of flow in

783-401: The system to ensure the longevity and efficiency of the structure. Engineers have to design these systems whilst considering a list of factors that ensure the discharge point is structurally stable as the entrance of the lateral culvert into the main structure may compromise the stability of the structure due to the lack of support at the discharge, this often constitutes additional supports in

812-558: The town of Acme , and due north until merging with the North Fork near the State Route 9 bridge, 1.6 km (1 mi) southeast of Deming and the Nooksack Indian Reservation . The traditional name of the South Fork in the Nooksack language is Nuxw7íyem ("always-clear water"). After the Middle and South Forks join, the combined river flows northwest, emerging from the valley south of

841-546: Was founded in 2003 by the Bellingham Bay Swim Team. In addition, 100% of net proceeds benefit Whatcom County youth non-profit organizations. In 1996, federal, state, tribal, and local governments came together to form the Bellingham Bay Demonstration Pilot team. The mission of the pilot team was to develop an approach to clean up contamination, control pollution sources and restore habitat among

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