By now we have all seen the spectacular images of volumes of water crashing down the Oroville Dam spillway in California and blasting upward into the air as they hit an enormous crater in the spillway floor, flooding down the adjacent hillside, threatening people in towns below. Those images reveal a big mistake: failure to […]
Earlier this week, while areas downstream of Oroville Dam were still under an evacuation order, California’s State Water Resources Control Board released a draft resolution for a comprehensive response to climate change. It resolves that the agency will embed climate science into all its existing work, both to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and to build […]
In a region that has seen so much drought over the last decade, the prospect of moisture would be a welcome one. But right now, not so much. The state of California has seen more moisture in the last few weeks than it typically gets in a year and this could actually turn into their […]
It’s raining in California. Again. A storm system hitting north and central California on Monday and Tuesday will deliver two to three inches of rain to the Central Valley, and up to 10 inches of rain to the mountains, said Eric Kurth, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sacramento. The service has issued […]
Oroville Dam’s badly damaged main spillway is still deteriorating from an onslaught of fast-paced water, but state officials insist that it is “stable” as they make repairs. State officials expected the concrete main spillway to erode last week when they opened its gates, betting that it was a safer option than the dam’s little-used emergency […]
You hear this every time there’s a drought or deluge in California: “Why haven’t they built more dams?” Truth is, they’ve built a bunch. And they’re about done with it. Tally them up. There are more than 1,400 dams in the state. At least 1,000 are major and 55 can hold 100,000 acre-feet or more […]
California Dam Crisis Could Have Been Averted
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Scientific American (Armonk, NY)by Jane Braxton LittleBy now we have all seen the spectacular images of volumes of water crashing down the Oroville Dam spillway in California and blasting upward into the air as they hit an enormous crater in the spillway floor, flooding down the adjacent hillside, threatening people in towns below. Those images reveal a big mistake: failure to […]
BLOG: Learning from Oroville: Water Board Proposes Climate Change Resolution
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)by Juliet Christian-SmithEarlier this week, while areas downstream of Oroville Dam were still under an evacuation order, California’s State Water Resources Control Board released a draft resolution for a comprehensive response to climate change. It resolves that the agency will embed climate science into all its existing work, both to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and to build […]
California Is Getting Too Much Of A Good Thing
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Fox 9 (Eden Prairie, Minn.)by Cody MatzIn a region that has seen so much drought over the last decade, the prospect of moisture would be a welcome one. But right now, not so much. The state of California has seen more moisture in the last few weeks than it typically gets in a year and this could actually turn into their […]
California Braces For More Rain. How Bad Can It Get?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The New York Timesby Erin McCannIt’s raining in California. Again. A storm system hitting north and central California on Monday and Tuesday will deliver two to three inches of rain to the Central Valley, and up to 10 inches of rain to the mountains, said Eric Kurth, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sacramento. The service has issued […]
Continued Erosion Of Oroville Dam’s Main Spillway Part Of ‘Normal Process,’ State Officials Say
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Adam AshtonOroville Dam’s badly damaged main spillway is still deteriorating from an onslaught of fast-paced water, but state officials insist that it is “stable” as they make repairs. State officials expected the concrete main spillway to erode last week when they opened its gates, betting that it was a safer option than the dam’s little-used emergency […]
OPINION: Does California Really Need More Dams? We’re Running Out Of Places To Put Them
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles Timesby George SkeltonYou hear this every time there’s a drought or deluge in California: “Why haven’t they built more dams?” Truth is, they’ve built a bunch. And they’re about done with it. Tally them up. There are more than 1,400 dams in the state. At least 1,000 are major and 55 can hold 100,000 acre-feet or more […]