The Rance is a river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 of northwestern France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. It flows into the English Channel

English Channel

The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...

 between Dinard

Dinard

Dinard is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in north-western France.Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a popular holiday destination, and this has resulted in the town having a variety of famous visitors and residents...

 and Saint-Malo

Saint-Malo

Saint-Malo is a walled port city in Brittany in northwestern France on the English Channel. It is a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine.-Demographics:The population can increase to up to 200,000 in the summer tourist season...

.

Before reaching the Channel, its waters are barred by a 750 metre long dam forming the Rance tidal power plant

Rance tidal power plant

The Rance Tidal Power Station is the world's first tidal power station and also the world's second biggest tidal power station. The facility is located on the estuary of the Rance River, in Brittany, France. Opened on the 26th November 1966, it is currently operated by Électricité de France, and is...

.

The river is linked to the Vilaine

Vilaine

The Vilaine is a river in Brittany, in the west of France. The river's source is in the Mayenne département , and flows out in the Atlantic Ocean at Pénestin in the Morbihan département . It is 218 km long...

 by means of the Canal d'Ille-et-Rance

Canal d'Ille-et-Rance

The Canal d'Ille-et-Rance is a canal in northwestern France connecting Dinan to the Vilaine at Rennes in western France.-References:...

.

Départements and towns along the river:

• Côtes-d'Armor
  Côtes-d'Armor
  Côtes-d'Armor is a department in the north of Brittany, in northwestern France.-History:Côtes-du-Nord was one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Brittany. Its name was changed in 1990 to...
  
   : Collinée
  Collinée
  Collinée is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in northwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Collinée are called collinéens.-External links:*...
  
  , Caulnes
  Caulnes
  Caulnes is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in northwestern France.-Population:Inhabitants of Caulnes are called Caulnais.-External links:* *...
  
  , Dinan
  Dinan
  Dinan is a walled Breton town and a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in northwestern France.-Geography:Its geographical setting is exceptional. Instead of nestling on the valley floor like Morlaix, most urban development has been on the hillside, overlooking the river Rance...
  
  
• Ille-et-Vilaine
  Ille-et-Vilaine
  Ille-et-Vilaine is a department of France, located in the region of Brittany in the northwest of the country.- History :Ille-et-Vilaine is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
  
   : Dinard
  Dinard
  Dinard is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in north-western France.Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a popular holiday destination, and this has resulted in the town having a variety of famous visitors and residents...
  
  , Saint-Malo
  Saint-Malo
  Saint-Malo is a walled port city in Brittany in northwestern France on the English Channel. It is a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine.-Demographics:The population can increase to up to 200,000 in the summer tourist season...
  
  

Hydrology and water quality

Tributaries of the Rance include:

• Croqueloir
• Clergé
• Fremeur
• Quinéford

This river has moderate turbidity

Turbidity

Turbidity is the cloudiness or haziness of a fluid caused by individual particles that are generally invisible to the naked eye, similar to smoke in air. The measurement of turbidity is a key test of water quality....

 and its brownish water is somewhat low in velocity due to the slight gradient of the watercourse; pH

PH

In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...

 levels have been measured at 8.13 within the city of Dinan

Dinan

Dinan is a walled Breton town and a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in northwestern France.-Geography:Its geographical setting is exceptional. Instead of nestling on the valley floor like Morlaix, most urban development has been on the hillside, overlooking the river Rance...

 and electrical conductivity of the waters have tested at 33 micro-siemens per centimetre. At this reference location, summer flows are typically in the range of 500 cuft/s.