Lake Oroville Community Update - October 25, 2019

DWR Joins Law Enforcement and Government Partners at Oroville’s Trunk-R-Treat Safety Fair

At the invitation of Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea, DWR’s Oroville Field Division will again participate in the annual Halloween “Trunk-R-Treat Safety Fair” at the Nelson Sports Complex from 3:30 to 6 p.m. on October 31. The event, organized by the Butte County Sheriff’s Office, provides a safe space for local children and families to celebrate Halloween. Public safety vehicles from local law enforcement and government agencies, decorated with Halloween themes, will have staff ready to hand out treats from trunks full of donated candy to the hundreds of trick-or-treaters and their families who enjoy this annual, festive event.

Fuel Load Management Project at Bidwell Canyon Requires Intermittent Lane Closure

The California Conservation Corps (CCC) will continue to work on a vegetation thinning and chipping project to minimize risk and lessen the spread of wildfire near the Bidwell Canyon day use area through November 1. The work will take place adjacent to Bidwell Canyon Road just before the Bidwell Canyon California State Parks entrance kiosk. At the end of each week, CCC’s chipping of removed brush will require one-way traffic controls due to a required lane closure. Drivers are cautioned to be alert for workers and flaggers.

Oroville Dam Safety Comprehensive Needs Assessment Ad Hoc Group Meeting Held Earlier This Month

The Oroville Dam Safety Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) Ad Hoc Group met on Wednesday, October 16 at 2 p.m. The goal of the Oroville Dam CNA is to identify priorities and appropriate solutions to bolster the integrity and resiliency of the Oroville Dam complex to ensure public safety. The primary role of the Ad Hoc Group is to communicate with the broader community about the CNA process and share community concerns or questions with DWR and the Independent Review Board.

For details about this meeting or past Oroville Dam CNA Ad Hoc meetings, visit: https://water.ca.gov/Programs/State-Water-Project/Oroville-Dam-Safety-Comprehensive-Needs-Assessment.

Public Access to the Spillway Boat Ramp Area and Dam Crest Road

As a reminder, the Spillway Boat Ramp area and parking lots are open to the public Friday through Sunday from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. The area remains closed Monday through Thursday to accommodate ongoing construction.

Walkers, joggers and bicyclists continue to enjoy daily access to the pedestrian lane on the lakeside of Dam Crest Road from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m., as well as parking at the Upper Overlook. For safety considerations, the public can only drive across Dam Crest Road within the operating hours of the Spillway Boat Ramp, which are Friday through Sunday from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Lake Level

The elevation of Oroville reservoir is 790 feet and storage is 2.08 million acre-feet. There is no rainfall in the 5-day forecast for the Feather River watershed and daily average inflows to the lake have ranged between 1,660 cfs to 2,490 cfs over the past week. Water releases from Lake Oroville are approximately 4,637 cubic feet per second (cfs) and will vary throughout the week based upon power generation schedules.  Water from the lake is being used locally for rice decomposition and waterfowl habitat and released to meet environmental and flow requirements in the Feather River as well as downstream in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.  The releases to the high flow channel of the Feather River, downstream of the Thermalito Afterbay River Outlet, are 2,490 cfs.

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