After a massive construction effort, the main flood control spillway at Oroville Dam is up and running in time for the rainy season and on point for its Nov. 1 target for repair, officials with the California Department of Water Resources announced today. DWR set Nov. 1 as its goal for repairing and reconstructing more […]
The State Water Resources Control Board today released its draft proposed regulation to implement permanent prohibitions against certain wasteful water use practices, as directed by Gov. Jerry Brown under executive orders B-37-16 and B-40-17. According to the State Water Board, the agency is conducting the rulemaking process under its “Waste and Unreasonable Use” authority as part of the […]
/in California and the U.S./by Mike Lee /Chico Enterprise-Record (As published by, The Mercury News (San Jose))by Risa Johnson
Crews are laying the last layer of concrete on the Oroville Dam spillway with one day until the state Department of Water Resources’ deadline to have the structure ready to pass flows of 100,000 cubic-feet per second, or cfs. Over the last week, Kiewit Corp. construction workers connected the lower and upper chutes and erected […]
A new study by the US Geological Survey finds the river’s flow has shrunk by about seven percent over the past 30 years. As air temperature rises due to increasing emissions of greenhouse gases, more water is sucked into the atmosphere from the snowpack and the river itself instead of flowing downstream. The amount that has […]
California’s ambitious plan to build two giant water tunnels under the West’s largest estuary has been deemed too expensive by some of the water utilities that would have to pay for it. As a result, attention is turning back to a cheaper option: One tunnel instead of two. On October 17, the board of directors of the Santa […]
Picture a beach next to a blue lake under the bright California skies, its water twinkling as the sun catches gentle waves, and birds cruising on the thermals above. As you walk towards the lake, you see that the water levels are low, leaving behind cracked and dry brown mud below the white beach. When […]
DWR Hits Nov. 1 Target For Oroville Spillway Repair
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Association of California Water Agencies (Sacramento)by Pamela MartineauAfter a massive construction effort, the main flood control spillway at Oroville Dam is up and running in time for the rainy season and on point for its Nov. 1 target for repair, officials with the California Department of Water Resources announced today. DWR set Nov. 1 as its goal for repairing and reconstructing more […]
State Water Board Releases Draft Proposed Water Waste Regulation
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Association of California Water AgenciesThe State Water Resources Control Board today released its draft proposed regulation to implement permanent prohibitions against certain wasteful water use practices, as directed by Gov. Jerry Brown under executive orders B-37-16 and B-40-17. According to the State Water Board, the agency is conducting the rulemaking process under its “Waste and Unreasonable Use” authority as part of the […]
Oroville Dam: DWR Says Spillway Will Be Done By Deadline
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Chico Enterprise-Record (As published by, The Mercury News (San Jose))by Risa JohnsonCrews are laying the last layer of concrete on the Oroville Dam spillway with one day until the state Department of Water Resources’ deadline to have the structure ready to pass flows of 100,000 cubic-feet per second, or cfs. Over the last week, Kiewit Corp. construction workers connected the lower and upper chutes and erected […]
Rising Temperatures Sucking Water Out Of The Colorado River
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /89.3 KPCC (Pasadena)by Emily GuerinA new study by the US Geological Survey finds the river’s flow has shrunk by about seven percent over the past 30 years. As air temperature rises due to increasing emissions of greenhouse gases, more water is sucked into the atmosphere from the snowpack and the river itself instead of flowing downstream. The amount that has […]
Could A Simpler Delta Tunnel Solve Years Of California Water Conflict?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)by Matt WeiserCalifornia’s ambitious plan to build two giant water tunnels under the West’s largest estuary has been deemed too expensive by some of the water utilities that would have to pay for it. As a result, attention is turning back to a cheaper option: One tunnel instead of two. On October 17, the board of directors of the Santa […]
The $383 Million Plan To Save California’s Artificial Desert ‘Sea’
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Mental Floss (Tampa, Fla.)by Starre VartanPicture a beach next to a blue lake under the bright California skies, its water twinkling as the sun catches gentle waves, and birds cruising on the thermals above. As you walk towards the lake, you see that the water levels are low, leaving behind cracked and dry brown mud below the white beach. When […]