HomeMy WebLinkAbout6.20.25 Board Correspondence - FW_ Lake Oroville Community Update - June 20, 2025.ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening
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From:Clerk of the Board
To:Clerk of the Board; Connelly, Bill; Cook, Holly; Cook, Robin; Durfee, Peter; Jessee, Meegan; Kimmelshue, Tod;
Kitts, Melissa; Krater, Sharleen; Lee, Lewis; Little, Melissa; Pickett, Andy; Ritter, Tami; Stephens, Brad J.;
Sweeney, Kathleen; Teeter, Doug; Zepeda, Elizabeth
Cc:Loeser, Kamie; Harvey-Butterfield, Briana
Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: Lake Oroville Community Update - June 20, 2025
Date:Friday, June 20, 2025 4:20:17 PM
Please see Board Correspondence -
From: California Natural Resources Agency <CNRA@public.govdelivery.com>
Sent: Friday, June 20, 2025 2:51 PM
To: Clerk of the Board <clerkoftheboard@buttecounty.net>
Subject: Lake Oroville Community Update - June 20, 2025
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Lake Oroville Community Update
June 20, 2025
Prescribed Burns Anticipated Next Week
CAL FIRE, in partnership with the Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the
Department of Parks and Recreation (State Parks), is planning a prescribed burn next
Tuesday, June 24, in the Loafer Creek Recreation Area near the Loafer Creek boat ramps
and Day Use Area. To ensure public safety, the Day Use Area and nearby trails within the
prescribed burn units will be temporarily closed during burn operations. Trail users should
be cautious when recreating near work areas, obey all posted signage, and avoid active
work zones. Smoke will be visible in the Oroville area during and after the burn.
Prescribed burn operations are weather-dependent and may be rescheduled if conditions
are not favorable.
Over the past few weeks, the Butte County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) and CAL FIRE have
been preparing the burn units by trimming lower branches on trees and shrubs and
creating small burn piles. These efforts help reduce fuel and promote a lower-intensity fire,
which supports both safety and the health of the oak woodland ecosystem. Following the
prescribed burn, crews will remain on-site to monitor conditions, extinguish any remaining
hot spots, and continue creating small burn piles. These piles will be safely burned during
the fall or winter months.
DWR appreciates the public’s cooperation and understanding as we work to reduce
wildfire risk, increase public safety, and support long-term land management goals.
Vegetation management remains a top priority for DWR and its partners, including CAL
FIRE, the Butte County Fire Department, BCSO, State Parks, the California Conservation
Corps (CCC), the California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), local tribes, and the Butte
County Fire Safe Council.
Golden Mussel Inspection Program
DWR’s mussel inspection program in Oroville is underway to protect State Water Project
(SWP) infrastructure. Mandatory watercraft inspections are required prior to launching at
the Oroville Facilities (Lake Oroville, Thermalito Forebay, Thermalito Afterbay). Watercraft
that pass the inspection will receive a seal and can launch during designated ramp hours.
Watercraft Inspection Location/Decontamination Services
North Thermalito Forebay at Garden Drive and HWY 70 in Oroville
Hours of operation: Daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Watercraft inspections and decontamination services at DWR’s Oroville facilities are free.
To pass an inspection, watercraft and trailers must not have any attached mussels and be
clean and 100 percent dry. Watercraft with ballast bags/tanks, bilge, and motors must
have a working battery and be operational to complete required inspections. Be sure to
bring your vessel’s keys!
Sealed Vessel Launching
All trailered and personal watercraft with an intact blue seal will be permitted to launch at
the following boat ramp facilities during the hours listed. Boat ramps at the Oroville
facilities will no longer be open 24/7. Launching trailered boats or personal watercraft is
not allowed at any other location.
Lake Oroville
Ramp hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Spillway
Bidwell Canyon
Extended Ramp hours: Daily from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Lime Saddle
Loafer Creek
Thermalito Afterbay
Ramp hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to one hour after sunset
Monument Hill
Thermalito Forebay
Ramp Hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
North Forebay (Non-motorized vessels only)
More details about DWR’s mussel inspection program are available at
water.ca.gov/mussels.
Spring-Run Chinook Salmon Mortality in the Feather River
DWR is committed to the health and survival of California fish populations, which continue
to be impacted by climate and ocean food supply changes. During high fish return periods
in the Feather River, DWR environmental scientists perform regular monitoring surveys to
track fish mortality. For the last two years, DWR scientists have observed increased
spring-run Chinook abundance in the Feather River and, unfortunately, increased salmon
mortality, which is unusual as spring-run mortality in the summer is generally low.
Mortalities normally occur in the late summer and fall, when spawning begins.
In 2024, DWR coordinated with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to
collect samples for pathology analysis and determined spring-run Chinook were infected
with Columnaris, a bacterial infection that affects freshwater fish. It is believed Columnaris
is once again causing increased fish mortality rates this spring.
DWR’s Feather River Fish Monitoring Station has counted more than 17,000 spring-run
Chinook salmon returning to spawn this year, the best return since 2013, with more fish
passing the structure daily. The monitoring station began operating in September 2023 to
accurately track the arrival timing, number, species, and origin (naturally or hatchery
raised) of returning salmon and steelhead. As fish migrate up the river, they pass through
the monitoring station that spans the river channel and contains chutes with underwater
cameras that capture video of fish using motion detection software. Upstream migrating
spring-run are not handled at the fish monitoring station.
Since the installation of the monitoring station, numerous fish species have successfully
passed through the fish monitoring station to migrate further up the Feather River.
Population data for the Feather River Fish Monitoring Station is publicly available and
updated regularly on CalFish.org.
2023 Fall-run Chinook salmon (September – December): 31,125
2024 Spring-run Chinook salmon: 7,115
2024 Fall-run Chinook salmon: 40,338
2024 Steelhead trout: 1,990
2025 Spring-run Chinook salmon (ongoing): 17,235
DWR has observed deceased spring-run Chinook salmon collecting on the Feather River
Fish Monitoring Station, located near the bottom of the low flow channel. Moribund fish are
also observed holding just upstream of the weir. These fish have already migrated
upstream, most to the Feather River Fish Hatchery, but have dropped back downstream
due to their weakened state. Any deceased fish floating downstream would be expected to
wash up on the weir as the monitoring station naturally collects debris, including dead fish
and vegetation, moving downstream. The monitoring station does not prevent fish from
traveling upstream or downstream.
Though spring-run are migrating upstream to hold over-summer in the deep, cold pools of
the low flow channel, some fish have been observed going downstream through the
monitoring station. Only net counts of fish passing upstream of the fish monitoring station
are updated on CalFish.
Spring- and fall-run Chinook salmon are successfully migrating up the Feather River to the
Feather River Fish Hatchery, where they are tagged and spawned to support Central
Valley and Pacific Ocean populations. DWR and CDFW continue to meet and exceed
Hatchery production goals for Chinook salmon and steelhead trout, even with recent
drought impacts.
The Department also continues to maintain compliance with Feather River water
temperature regulations required by the CDFW and the National Marine Fisheries Service
for the health of fish populations. In fact, water temperatures in the Feather River this
spring have met or been colder than required regulations.
Oroville Recreation
Between Jan. 30 and April 20, higher flows in the Feather River required the temporary
removal of sensitive fish monitoring equipment or may have impacted counting operations.
Upstream migrating fish totals through the Feather River Fish Monitoring Station between
Jan. 1 and June 15, 2025 are:
Spring-run Chinook salmon: 17,235
Steelhead: 171
To see previous year data, visit CalFish.org.
Current Lake Operations
Lake Oroville is at 894 feet elevation and storage is approximately 3.34 million acre-feet
(MAF), which is 98 percent of its total capacity and 122 percent of the historical average.
Feather River flows are at 850 cfs through the City of Oroville with 3,650 cfs being
released from the Thermalito Afterbay River Outlet (Outlet) for a total Feather River
release of 4,500 cfs downstream. DWR continues to assess Feather River releases
daily.
The public can track precipitation, snow, reservoir levels, and more at the California Data
Exchange Center. The Lake Oroville gage station is identified as “ORO.”
All data as of 11:59 p.m. on 6/19/2025.
This email was sent to clerkoftheboard@buttecounty.net from the California Natural Resources Agency
utilizing govDelivery. California Natural Resources Agency, 715 P Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
California Department of Water Resources
715 P Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Call our general information line at 916-820-8142
or email us at oroville@water.ca.gov
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