HomeMy WebLinkAbout04.16.26 Board Correspondence - FW_ Lake Oroville Community Update - April 17, 2026.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; Cannon, Jamie
Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: Lake Oroville Community Update - April 17, 2026
Date:Monday, April 20, 2026 8:34:41 AM
Attachments:image001.png
Please see Board Correspondence -
Lewis LeeAdministrative Technician - ConfidentialButte County Administration25 County Center Drive, Suite 200 • Oroville, CA 95965T: 530.552.3326www.buttecounty.ca.gov | lelee@buttecounty.ca.gov
From: California Natural Resources Agency <CNRA@public.govdelivery.com>
Sent: Friday, April 17, 2026 2:52 PM
To: Clerk of the Board <clerkoftheboard@buttecounty.ca.gov>
Subject: Lake Oroville Community Update - April 17, 2026
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Lake Oroville Community Update
April 17, 2026
DWR Maintaining Releases for Flood Protection
With additional wet weather expected in the Feather River watershed, the Department of
Water Resources (DWR) is maintaining water releases from Oroville Dam to provide flood
protection for downstream communities. Releases are being made through the Hyatt
Powerplant for power generation and Oroville Dam’s main spillway. DWR is conserving as
much water as possible in Lake Oroville while continuing to meet federal guidelines for
downstream flood protection and state environmental regulations.
Between mid-September and June, DWR is required to operate Lake Oroville for flood
control under federal Water Control Manual Guidelines set by the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers. These federal regulations establish a set storage space that is reserved to
capture inflows from rain and future snowmelt, while protecting downstream communities
from damaging flood events through coordinated releases. To maintain this storage
space, DWR conducts flood protection releases from Lake Oroville. Some of the water
released from Oroville for flood control is captured downstream for beneficial uses by local
landowners, communities, and the State Water Project. Releases from Oroville Dam also
support Feather River habitat for salmon, steelhead, sturgeon, and other river species.
DWR coordinates releases to the Feather River closely with the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers and other downstream water operators. DWR advises Feather River recreation
users to remain alert as river flows are expected to be swift and cold and may change
based on projected weather forecasts.
The information below reflects current reservoir level estimates. Forecasts can change
quickly and may affect the estimates provided.
Current Oroville Reservoir Level: 889 feet elevation
Current Storage: 95 percent of capacity
Total Releases to the Feather River: 5,000 cubic feet per second (cfs)
The Lake Oroville reservoir is the largest storage facility in the State Water Project,
providing flood protection while supporting environmental and water delivery needs to 27
million Californians.
DWR continues to monitor lake levels, weather forecasts, and mountain snow levels
to optimize water storage and allow for carryover storage into the following year.
Feather River Fish Hatchery Fish Planting Activities
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) released 129,000 fall-run inland
Chinook salmon fingerlings into Lake Oroville on April 15 at the Loafer Creek Boat Ramp
to support recreational fishing opportunities. The fish, averaging approximately 4–6 inches
in length, were raised at the Feather River Fish Hatchery and are triploid (sterile), meaning
they cannot reproduce.
Inland program fish are raised separately from Chinook salmon and steelhead released
into Central Valley rivers and the San Francisco Bay. Because Lake Oroville supplies
water to the hatchery, all fish stocked in the lake must be disease-free and undergo
Hematopoietic Necrosis (IHN), which can cause significant fish loss.
CDFW also successfully completed Central Valley Chinook salmon Feather River
releases between March 18 and April 13. These spring- and fall-run salmon, raised at the
Feather River Fish Hatchery, averaged 3–4 inches in length at the time of release:
Feather River at Gridley Boat Launch: 1,499,612 spring-run
Feather River at Boyd’s Pump Boat Launch: 1,534,686 spring-run
Feather River at Boyd’s Pump Boat Launch: 1,163,845 fall-run
Additional fall-run Chinook salmon will be released into the San Francisco Bay through
early June as part of normal operations.
The Feather River Fish Hatchery is a State Water Project facility built in the late 1960s by
the California Department of Water Resources to offset impacts to fish migration caused
by the construction of Oroville Dam. DWR owns and maintains the facility and provides
funding to CDFW for fish spawning, rearing, and stocking operations.
Golden Mussel Inspection Program
DWR has moved its invasive mussel inspection/decontamination facilities at the North
Thermalito Forebay to the paved RV parking lot near the entrance. Watercraft owners
should turn right once past the main entrance. Signage is posted to help direct
traffic. More details about DWR’s mussel inspection program are available
at water.ca.gov/mussels.
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.
Sealed Vessel Launching
Lake Oroville
Ramp hours: Daily from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Spillway
Bidwell Canyon
Ramp hours: Daily from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Lime Saddle
Loafer Creek/Loafer Point
Thermalito Afterbay
Ramp hours: Daily from 1.5 hours before sunrise to 1 hour after sunset
Monument Hill
Thermalito Forebay
Ramp Hours: Daily from 8 a.m. to sunset
North Forebay (Non-motorized vessels only)
Feather River Fish Monitoring Station
DWR resumed operations of the Feather River fish monitoring station on March 4, 2026 to
capture the return of spring-run Chinook salmon. Monitoring was temporarily
suspended at the end of December 2025 due to anticipated high flows in the Feather
River. Upstream migrating fish totals between March 4 and April 13, 2026 are:
Spring-run Chinook salmon: 975
Steelhead: -4 (most likely kelts moving downstream)
To see previous year data, visit CalFish.org.
Current Lake Operations
Lake Oroville is at 889 feet elevation and storage is approximately 3.26 million acre-feet
(MAF), which is 95 percent of its total capacity and 124 percent of the historical average.
Feather River flows are at 650 cfs through the City of Oroville with releases from the
Thermalito Afterbay River Outlet at 4,350 cfs for a total Feather River release of 5,000 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 4/16/2026.
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
Contact Us
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
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