The Sacramento River, prior to the introduction of hydraulic mining in 1853 was, during the running season, so plentifully stocked with salmon that no use could be made of but a moiety of the supply, and we have an illustration of the destructive force of this new agent when we consider the fact that eleven years after its introduction the Sacramento River was practically rendered useless for commercial purposes as a salmon stream. (R.D. Hume. Salmon of the Pacific Coast. San Francisco: Schmidt Label and Lithographic, 1893)
This excerpt from a reading for my American Environmental History class was very interesting to me in relation to today's widespread use of hydraulic fracturing as a means of resource extraction. It's amazing to see the effect that even more primitive mining techniques had on water and land resources throughout American history. Below are some pictures of the hydraulic mining being employed in the American west during the mid-1800s.
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