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Kern County Officials, Growers Concerned About Lake Isabella Water Levels

Bakersfield and Kern County have been in drought mode since the end of last year with restrictions and cutbacks in place to try and save as much water as possible as we head into the hot summer months.

But water officials and growers are concerned as the flow from the Upper Kern into Lake Isabella now reduces to a trickle in the coming weeks and months.

Large Energy Storage Project Would Create New Reservoir Above Isabella Lake

A $3 billion pumped-water energy storage project has been proposed along Isabella Lake that would help even out power delivery from California solar and wind farms at a volume and longevity dwarfing the large battery installations envisioned for eastern Kern.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is reviewing a Walnut engineering company’s plan to create a new reservoir above the lake then use pumps and underground pipes to turn it into a rechargeable dam and hydroelectric generator putting out a whopping 2,000 megawatts of power for up to 12 hours at a time.