California Drought

[California]

DWR's playlist of YouTube videos. Latest at the moment is a 3/2 drone flyover showing progress clearing the channel.

Oroville Spillway Incident - YouTube

 

[EddieWalker]

It's very impressive seeing all that equipment there!!! Why are they moving all the rock and dirt? and where to?

 

[California]

That's the debris that washed down the hill and plugged up the river downstream from the generating plant. This artificial dam downstream made it impossible to release reservoir water through the generating plant. There was also danger of the water rising so high it would submerge and destroy the generators.

They are re-opening the Feather River downstream from the generating plant.

 

[EddieWalker]

I'm not sure if I understand. Did the debris from the spillway create a dam that allowed the water in the river to rise to a point that the water is now higher then the generators? If so, I didn't see anything like that in the video. It looks like they are dredging the river, but not affecting how high it is with the excavators on the barges. Why are the moving all the rock from the hillside and where are they putting it?

 

[orezok]

Too bad CA won't put those deadbeat homeless men they are providing housing for to work fixing that spillway. That'd be the best thing for them.

I understand there are homeless in need but I bet 70% of them are just bums.

Of course you know that a high percentage of homeless are former military that served in Afganistan and Iraq and are suffering from PTSD. I guess that you don't like the military either!

 

[aczlan]

I'm not sure if I understand. Did the debris from the spillway create a dam that allowed the water in the river to rise to a point that the water is now higher then the generators? If so, I didn't see anything like that in the video.

When they were dumping water down the main spillway (and then down the hillside), it made the "island" that they are now removing.
There was also enough water moving "upstream" that the water level at the base of the dam/powerhouse outlet dropped close to 20' when they shut off the spillway.

It looks like they are dredging the river, but not affecting how high it is with the excavators on the barges. Why are the moving all the rock from the hillside and where are they putting it?

It looks like they are dredging from one end to the other, but leaving a "plug" at the downstream end so they don't have as much water flow to deal with.

I think they are stockpiling it somewhere uphill, but I am not sure.

Aaron Z

 

[prichard]

Not pointing fingers at any one individual but it amazes me how far off topic things can stray. How's the weather in California these days? Here's the report;

United States Drought Monitor > Home

Thank you

 

[California]

In the 3/2 video at 1:48 it looks like they are trucking the debris uphill and dumping it on a shoulder downstream from the emergency spillway, maybe 200 ft elevation above the river.

 

[lilranch2001]

I am curious how they were able to get environmental permits so quickly to do this work

 

[California]

I am curious how they were able to get environmental permits so quickly to do this work

Easy, this is finally an instance where all the stakeholders have the same goal.