Few people realize how outdated our systems for water information are. Because of data limitations, real-time, transparent decisions about drought management, flood response and groundwater protection have eluded the state for the past century. Without basic numbers on where, when and how much water is available and being used, we can’t improve how we manage […]
Sacramento County advised residents in the Tyler Island area south of Walnut Grove to evacuate Monday due to a compromised levee. About 20 homes are in the area, said Sacramento County Water Resources spokesman Matt Robinson. Tyler Island is protected by a ring levee. The county expected imminent failure of the North Fork Mokelumne River […]
It wasn’t so long ago that residents here had to drag their houseboats into a dusty field from the barren banks of Lake Oroville, which had almost no water left to keep them afloat. Now after weeks of rain, that dusty field is swelling with water and nearly 200,000 people had to evacuate the area […]
Federal officials Monday ordered California to convene a five-member independent board of dam experts to review the condition of Oroville’s auxiliary spillway and the damaged regular concrete spillway, and to make recommendations about how to improve safety during the emergency and over the long-term. In a letter to the state Department of Water Resources, the […]
Eleven years ago, as three environmental groups were urging the state and federal government to require that concrete be used to armor the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam — an earthen spillway whose near collapse caused the evacuation of 200,000 people this week — state water officials said that was unnecessary. “The spillway is a […]
Here are some central questions and answers about the damage to the Oroville Dam and the fight to prevent a catastrophe: What is the Oroville Dam? Work on the Oroville Dam — the tallest dam in the country at 770 feet — started in 1957 and included the relocation of California State Route 70 and […]
OPINION: As We Fix California Water System, Also Fix Data System
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Modesto Beeby Michael Kiparsky and Roger BalesFew people realize how outdated our systems for water information are. Because of data limitations, real-time, transparent decisions about drought management, flood response and groundwater protection have eluded the state for the past century. Without basic numbers on where, when and how much water is available and being used, we can’t improve how we manage […]
Compromised Levee Forces Evacuation Of Tyler Island In Delta; Unrelated To Oroville
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Ellen GarrisonSacramento County advised residents in the Tyler Island area south of Walnut Grove to evacuate Monday due to a compromised levee. About 20 homes are in the area, said Sacramento County Water Resources spokesman Matt Robinson. Tyler Island is protected by a ring levee. The county expected imminent failure of the North Fork Mokelumne River […]
In Shadow Of California Dam, Water Turns From Wish To Woe
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The New York Timesby Mike McPhate and Jess BidgoodIt wasn’t so long ago that residents here had to drag their houseboats into a dusty field from the barren banks of Lake Oroville, which had almost no water left to keep them afloat. Now after weeks of rain, that dusty field is swelling with water and nearly 200,000 people had to evacuate the area […]
Feds Order Independent Safety Review Of Oroville Spillways
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /OrovilleMR Newsby Matthias GafniFederal officials Monday ordered California to convene a five-member independent board of dam experts to review the condition of Oroville’s auxiliary spillway and the damaged regular concrete spillway, and to make recommendations about how to improve safety during the emergency and over the long-term. In a letter to the state Department of Water Resources, the […]
State Said Emergency Spillway was ‘Safe and Solid’ After Challenge
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Chico Enteriprise Recordby Paul Rogers and San JoseEleven years ago, as three environmental groups were urging the state and federal government to require that concrete be used to armor the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam — an earthen spillway whose near collapse caused the evacuation of 200,000 people this week — state water officials said that was unnecessary. “The spillway is a […]
Courting Disaster At Oroville Dam — Key Questions and Answers
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /San Francisco Chronicleby Jill TuckerHere are some central questions and answers about the damage to the Oroville Dam and the fight to prevent a catastrophe: What is the Oroville Dam? Work on the Oroville Dam — the tallest dam in the country at 770 feet — started in 1957 and included the relocation of California State Route 70 and […]