Bucaná River

Bucaná River
Río Bucaná, looking north, from Puente de la Avenida Caribe, Barrio Playa, Ponce
Map
Native nameRío Bucaná (Spanish)
Location
CommonwealthPuerto Rico
MunicipalityPonce
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationBarrio Machuelo Arriba
 • coordinates17°58′07″N 66°36′00″W / 17.9685786°N 66.5998946°W / 17.9685786; -66.5998946[1]
 • elevation115 feet (35 m)[4]
Mouth 
 • location
Barrio Playa, Caribbean Sea
 • elevation
0 feet (0 m) (Caribbean Sea)
Length5.69 mi (9.16 km)[2][3]
Basin size28.45 sq mi (73.7 km2)[2][3]
Basin features
ProgressionMachuelo Abajo
Sabanetas
Bucaná
Playa (Ponce)
River systemRío Bucaná
Tributaries 
 • leftRio Portugues[4]
 • rightRio Cerrillos[4]
Map showing the location of Río Bucaná among the other rivers in the municipality. The area in pink represents the urban zone of the city

Bucaná River (Spanish: Río Bucaná) is a river in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Río Bucaná has its origin in barrio Machuelo Arriba where it forms at an altitude of 115 feet (35 m). It forms from the confluence of Río Cerrillos and Río Bayagán.[5][note a] It is also fed by Río Portugues during its southernly run. Río Bucaná used to run for some 29.5 kilometers (18.3 mi)[6] prior to canalization and other diversion work by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. It now runs for 5.89 miles (9.48 km) to drain into the Caribbean Sea. This river is one of the 14 rivers in the municipality.

Tributaries

Río Bucaná is formed in barrio Machuelo Arriba by the confluence of the Bayagán and Cerrillos rivers.[6] It has two tributaries, Río Portugues and Río Cerrillos.

Course

Río Bucaná originates in Cordillera Central at Monte Jayuya and runs in a winding fashion to the south receiving feeds from Rio Jauca, Rio Bayagan and Quebrada Guayo.[7] Río Bucaná is channelized from the point it enters the city of Ponce and until it is fed by Rio Portugues (a river that is also channelized) in Barrio Bucaná at the southern tip of Julio Enrique Monagas Family Park.[8] The channelization project started in 1974[9] and was completed in 1997.[10] It was a multimillion-dollar investment, with just the first phase costing $120 million.[11] The river empties into the Caribbean Sea near La Guancha. A section of the river used to run alongside Route 14, near the former Hospital de Distrito (now Hospital San Lucas), but it has since been diverted.[12]

The following table summarizes the course of Río Bucaná in terms of roads crossed. Roads are listed as the river flows from its origin at the confluence of Río Bayagán and Río Cerrillos rivers, located in Barrio Machuelo Arriba, north of the city of Ponce, to its emptying into the Caribbean Sea in Barrio Bucaná in the south (N/A = Data not available):

No. Barrio Road Road's
km marker		 NBI ID[13] Bridge name
(if any)		 Direction
(of bridge traffic)		 Coordinates Notes
1 Machuelo Arriba PR-14 (Av. Tito Castro) 5.4 23051 Unnamed Both 18°2′21.2994″N 66°34′56.604″W / 18.039249833°N 66.58239000°W / 18.039249833; -66.58239000 0.2 km W of Walmart of Coto Laurel
2 Machuelo Abajo PR-10 3.8 14331 Unnamed NB 18°2′2.256″N 66°35′1.2114″W / 18.03396000°N 66.583669833°W / 18.03396000; -66.583669833 PR-10 North ramp into PR-14 East, km 3.4
3 Machuelo Abajo PR-10 3.8 24891 Unnamed SB 18°2′1.7514″N 66°35′1.932″W / 18.033819833°N 66.58387000°W / 18.033819833; -66.58387000
4 Sabanetas PR-1 (Av. La Ceiba) 125.0 12291 La Ceiba WB 18°0′21.7434″N 66°35′34.4034″W / 18.006039833°N 66.592889833°W / 18.006039833; -66.592889833 next to Ponce Candy Industries
5 Sabanetas PR-1 (Av. La Ceiba) 125.0 12291 La Ceiba EB 18°0′21.24″N 66°35′34.5474″W / 18.0059000°N 66.592929833°W / 18.0059000; -66.592929833 next to Ponce Candy Industries
6 Bucaná PR-52 103.7 23351 Unnamed WB 17°59′8.3394″N 66°35′51.5034″W / 17.985649833°N 66.597639833°W / 17.985649833; -66.597639833
7 Bucaná PR-52 103.7 23351 Unnamed EB 17°59′7.7274″N 66°35′51.5034″W / 17.985479833°N 66.597639833°W / 17.985479833; -66.597639833
8 Playa Avenida Caribe not marked N/A Unnamed Both 17°58′30.8994″N 66°35′56.364″W / 17.975249833°N 66.59899000°W / 17.975249833; -66.59899000 0.25 km NE of Hotel Ponce Hilton
 

Uses

Río Bucaná is largely used for irrigation of crops on the southern plains of Puerto Rico located east of the city of Ponce.[14]

See also

Notes

1.^ One reliable source, (Puerto Rico Department of Environmental Resources)[15] dated February 2007, states that this river forms from the confluence of Río Cerrillos and Río Bayagán. However, another reliable source, (Puerto Rico Office of Management and Budget)[16] not dated but using data with dates that fluctuate between 2001 and 2010, shows the river forms from various minor streams, and that Río Cerrillos is a feeder river to Río Bucaná. In this article we are using the first source as the most reliable. Still, given that the U.S. Corps of Engineers has been working in redirecting and canalizing Río Bucaná, the reader is advised that the actual origin of the current river may be one of the two stated above or may well be different yet.

References

  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Río Bucaná
  2. ^ a b "Los Rios" (PDF). Hojas de Nuestro Ambiente (in Spanish). Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. February 2007. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  3. ^ a b Quiñones, Ferdinand (2018). "Recursos de Agua de Puerto Rico" (PDF) (in Spanish). pp. 3–7. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  4. ^ a b c "Maptest". General Purpose Population Data, Census 2000. Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Archived from the original on 18 February 2010. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  5. ^ Los Rios. Archived 2012-04-01 at the Wayback Machine Hojas de Nuestro Ambiente. February 2007: P013. Page 2. Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  6. ^ a b Projecto Salon Hogar (Estudios Sociales, Puerto Rico, Ponce, Hidrografia). Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  7. ^ Government of the Municipality of Ponce. Periodico "El Señorial". Special issue: Carnaval Ponceño 2013. February 2013. Page 17. Ponce, Puerto Rico.
  8. ^ The Rivers of Puerto Rico.
  9. ^ Carmelo Rosario Natal. Ponce En Su Historia Moderna: 1945-2002. Published by Secretaría de Cultura y Turismo of the Government of the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 2003. p. 118.
  10. ^ Proyecto de año: Represa Portugués, Construcción con Ingeniería Extrema. Archived 28 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine Planos y Capacets. May–Jun 2011. Page 10. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
  11. ^ Carmelo Rosario Natal. Ponce En Su Historia Moderna: 1945-2002. Published by Secretaría de Cultura y Turismo of the Government of the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 2003. p. 118.
  12. ^ Topographic Map of the City of Ponce.U.S. Geological Survey. 1970. Photorevised 1982. University of Texas Library. Map of old route of river by Route 14/Hospital Distrito. Retrieved 27 November 2009.
  13. ^ National Bridge Inventory Data: Puerto Rico, Ponce. Archived 22 February 2019 at the Wayback Machine James Baughn. BridgeReports.com 2018. Accessed 26 November 2018.
  14. ^ SAURI v. SAURI. Archived 4 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine(LEAGLE: Debate Cases, Regulations, Statutes, and More) 45 F.2d 90 (1930). United States Circuit Court of Appeals, First Circuit. 26 November 1930. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  15. ^ Los Rios. Archived 2012-04-01 at the Wayback Machine Hojas de Nuestro Ambiente. February 2007: P013. Page 2. Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  16. ^ Maptest. Archived 18 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. General Purpose Population Data, Census 2000. Unidad de Sistemas de Información Geográfica, Área de Tecnología de Información Gubernamental, Oficina de Gerencia y Presupuesto. Gobierno de Puerto Rico. Retrieved 24 October 2011.