The fractured spillway at Oroville Dam has forced the state to spend tens of millions of dollars on emergency repairs, with millions more to come. Here’s another potential cost: a slice of California’s water supply. Dam operators are expected to run Lake Oroville, the state’s second largest reservoir, at lower-than-usual water levels this summer as […]
High river flows have restricted boaters from many areas of the San Joaquin Delta. The large snowpack and runoff that is to follow this spring could keep South and Central Delta sloughs and channels closed to boats until late spring or early summer. The San Joaquin Office of Emergency Services (OES) continues to keep the […]
As California water officials confirmed Thursday that the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada remains well above average, pressure was mounting on the state to lift emergency water restrictions that have been in place for two years. The snowpack across the mountains is now 164 percent of average, a closely watched marker in the nation’s most […]
Two years ago, Gov. Jerry Brown stood on a patch of bare Sierra dirt that should have been covered in feet of snow and declared the state was in a “historic drought.” Things couldn’t be more different this year as the state enters the traditional start of its long dry season. On Thursday, the state […]
The skies were gray, snow was falling and it was bitterly cold when state snow survey chief Frank Gehrke made his monthly march out to a deep pillow of snow in the Sierra Nevada town of Phillips on Thursday morning. He plodded across the white mounds, plunged his metallic pole into the powder beneath him, […]
Republicans from arid Western states have set their sights on making dam-building easier. Led by California Representative Tom McClintock, lawmakers from Wyoming, North Dakota, Arizona, and Colorado introduced a bill last week that would try to force federal agencies to complete complex environmental studies for dam-building plans within a year. But many water scientists, river […]
Why Oroville Dam’s Woes Could Cut Into California Water Supplies
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Bee by Dale Kasler and Ryan SabalowThe fractured spillway at Oroville Dam has forced the state to spend tens of millions of dollars on emergency repairs, with millions more to come. Here’s another potential cost: a slice of California’s water supply. Dam operators are expected to run Lake Oroville, the state’s second largest reservoir, at lower-than-usual water levels this summer as […]
Heavy Snowpack Could Extend Delta Boating Restrictions Through Spring
/in California and the U.S. /by Andrea Mora /The Delta Confluence (Sacramento)High river flows have restricted boaters from many areas of the San Joaquin Delta. The large snowpack and runoff that is to follow this spring could keep South and Central Delta sloughs and channels closed to boats until late spring or early summer. The San Joaquin Office of Emergency Services (OES) continues to keep the […]
With Drought Emergency Over, Californians Debate Lifting Water Restrictions
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /NPR by Kirk SieglerAs California water officials confirmed Thursday that the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada remains well above average, pressure was mounting on the state to lift emergency water restrictions that have been in place for two years. The snowpack across the mountains is now 164 percent of average, a closely watched marker in the nation’s most […]
Will ‘Very Substantial’ Snowpack Prompt Gov. Jerry Brown To Declare The Drought Over?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Ryan SabalowTwo years ago, Gov. Jerry Brown stood on a patch of bare Sierra dirt that should have been covered in feet of snow and declared the state was in a “historic drought.” Things couldn’t be more different this year as the state enters the traditional start of its long dry season. On Thursday, the state […]
California Snowpack Is One Of The Biggest Ever Recorded, And Now Poses A Flooding Risk
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles Timesby Joseph SernaThe skies were gray, snow was falling and it was bitterly cold when state snow survey chief Frank Gehrke made his monthly march out to a deep pillow of snow in the Sierra Nevada town of Phillips on Thursday morning. He plodded across the white mounds, plunged his metallic pole into the powder beneath him, […]
Congress Eyes A Bill To Speed Up Dam Construction
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Pacific Standard (Santa Barbara)by Bob BerwynRepublicans from arid Western states have set their sights on making dam-building easier. Led by California Representative Tom McClintock, lawmakers from Wyoming, North Dakota, Arizona, and Colorado introduced a bill last week that would try to force federal agencies to complete complex environmental studies for dam-building plans within a year. But many water scientists, river […]