The Ondaine or Ondenon is a river in the Loire department of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is a right tributary of the

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

Geography

The Ondaine has its source in the woods of Neyranche in the commune of Planfoy at an elevation of , where it is called the Ondenon. When passing through the town of

La Ricamarie La Ricamarie () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. It is situated between the city of Saint-Etienne and the town of Firminy. Population Twin towns La Ricamarie is twinned with: * Pyskowice, Poland, since 1998 See also ...

it takes the name Ondaine. Its basin covers mostly in the department of the Loire, but also in part of

Haute-Loire Haute-Loire (; oc, Naut Léger or ''Naut Leir''; English: Upper Loire) is a landlocked department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of south-central France. Named after the Loire River, it is surrounded by the departments of Loire, Ardèche ...

. The Ondaine is one of the rivers of the Loire Valley covered by "river contracts" that are supported by the General Council of the Loire, the Rhône-Alpes region, the Water Agencies, and the State. It flows into the Loire at the locality called Pertuiset in the commune of Unieux at above sea level opposite Caloire.

Communes and cantons crossed

The Ondaine flows through the department of the Loire, passing from upstream to downstream through the communes of Planfoy (source),

Saint-Genest-Malifaux Saint-Genest-Malifaux () is a small town in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France. Administratively it is designated a commune within the department of Loire. Population See also *Communes of the Loire department The followin ...

Le Chambon-Feugerolles Le Chambon-Feugerolles () is a commune in the French department of Loire, central France. Population Twin towns Le Chambon-Feugerolles is twinned with Herzebrock-Clarholz, Germany, since 1973. See also *Communes of the Loire department The ...

Firminy Firminy (; oc, Frominiu) is a commune in the Loire department in central France. It lies on the river Ondaine, 13 km southwest of Saint-Étienne by rail. History The ancient name of the town was ''Firminiaco'' or ''Firminiacus'' (lit. " ...

, Fraisses, Saint-Paul-en-Cornillon,

Unieux Unieux () is a commune in the Loire department in central France. Unieux is located within a larger metropolitan area, yet is surrounded by delightful and varied countryside. In recent years, the council of Unieux has made great efforts to impr ...

(confluence) and Caloire. In terms of cantons, The Ondaine rises in the canton of Saint-Genest-Malifaux, passes through or beside the cantons of Le Chambon-Feugerolles, Saint-Genest-Malifaux and the canton of Firminy at its mouth.

Tributaries

The Ondaine has twelve named tributaries of which the seven major tributaries are: *Cotatay (left) 10.5 km with seven communes and five tributaries referenced. *Valchérie (left) 10.7 km with five communes and two tributaries referenced. *Malval (left) 3.7 km with two communes and two tributaries referenced. *Echapre or Echarpe (left) 9.8 km with six communes and three tributaries referenced. *Borde-Matin (right) 4.1 km with four communes without tributaries referenced. *Gampille (left) 12.5 km with seven communes and ten tributaries referenced. *Egotay (right) 5.9 km with four communes and two tributaries referenced.

Hydrology and flooding

On 5 June 2007 a major flood on the Ondaine and small tributaries upstream caused by major storms flooded part of the city of

and caused extensive damage but no casualties. Despite the rapid nature of the flood (about half an hour), the water rose to in some homes. The weather service had issued a warning that storms could be locally strong.Carte vigilance Meteo France
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Facilities and ecology

*Ondenon dam *Cotatay dam *Treatment plant before the confluence The river was an open sewer in the late 1990s. It now houses fish species such as

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...

minnow Minnow is the common name for a number of species of small freshwater fish, belonging to several genera of the families Cyprinidae and Leuciscidae. They are also known in Ireland as pinkeens. Smaller fish in the subfamily Leusciscidae are co ...

gudgeon A gudgeon is a socket-like, cylindrical (i.e., ''female'') fitting attached to one component to enable a pivoting or hinging connection to a second component. The second component carries a pintle fitting, the male counterpart to the gudgeon, ...

sculpin A sculpin is a type of fish that belongs to the superfamily Cottoidea in the order Scorpaeniformes.Kane, E. A. and T. E. Higham. (2012)Life in the flow lane: differences in pectoral fin morphology suggest transitions in station-holding demand a ...

stone loach The stone loach (''Barbatula barbatula'') is a European species of fresh water ray-finned fish in the family Nemacheilidae. It is one of nineteen species in the genus ''Barbatula''. Stone loaches live amongst the gravel and stones of fast flowin ...

European chub ''Squalius cephalus'' is a European species of freshwater fish in the carp family Cyprinidae. It frequents both slow and moderate rivers, as well as canals and still waters of various kinds. This species is referred to as the common chub, Europe ...

and

perch Perch is a common name for fish of the genus ''Perca'', freshwater gamefish belonging to the family Percidae. The perch, of which three species occur in different geographical areas, lend their name to a large order of vertebrates: the Percif ...

. It is again a first class stream.

References

Notes Citations {{DEFAULTSORT:Ondaine Rivers of France Rivers of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Rivers of Loire (department)