I’m Shocked! I’m Shocked to See No Water! No Joke
AENN
California Department of Water Resources Will Not Use the Spillway.
Suddenly there is no snow or run off in the Feather River water shed that could be a flooding threat at the Oroville Dam. In an announcement on the KCRA weather report from Sacramento, CA it was stated DWR said there was no need to use the main spillway at Oroville Dam. The announcement comes as a complete surprise to most but in reality was expected.
Paul Preston of Agenda 21 Radio in a presentation Monday night explained to the Feather River Tea Party Patriots in Yuba City, CA. that the DWR would do this exact thing. In light of all the activity that had been taking place at the dam during the period on May 29-31 when crews were seen working feverishly to complete a drainage system at the top of the main spillway radius and other porting “fixes” on the earthen areas around the spillway.
In addition a dubious suspicious report released by the DWR by the OROVILLE EMERGENCY RECOVERY-SPILLWAYS Board of Consultants claimed the main spillway (DWR refers to it as Flood Control Outlet FCO) was safe!
From page 1 of the report:
“The entire FCO chute from the spillway gates to the dentates was inspected by the BOC, except for areas that were wet from flowing water where safety and slippery conditions were a concern”.
In light of the above statement what could possibly go wrong with the $1.5 billion rebuilt spillway?
But above is not all. There was no mention of the spillway gates, the headworks that support the Tainter Radial Arm gates and the emergency spillway.
The consultants did admit there were problems with the “underdrains” inside the spillway. There is all but an admission the drains do not work as designed. On page 12 of the it states:
- Does the BOC have any other recommendations or comments?
Response
The BOC views the method of estimating flow by photography of flow depth comparison with the optical markings taken from across the spillway chute, or photographed by use of drones, is not a practical long-term monitoring procedure given the minimal amount of seepage emanating from the spillway chute drains.
Flow volumes estimated on the basis of this method cannot be determined with sufficient accuracy to identify trends or changes in the monitored data with time and different magnitudes of flow releases. The BOC recommends that a method be devised to more accurately determine the flow rate from the FCO chute underdrains using a timed volumetric approach. The flow from the wall drains that collect rainfall infiltration in the wall backfill is not, in the opinion of the BOC, a long-term monitoring requirement.
There has been no statement from DWR. We are awaiting the statement from the DWR. Mark Finan from KCRA 3 in Sacramento, CA reported this story last night. If they don’t come out with a statement then it was a trial ballon.
This is a developing story.
