Aerial photo shows major California reservoir 60% dried up
By
Zachary Rosenthal, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Jun 4, 2021 8:46 PM EST
AccuWeather's Bill Wadell was in Oroville, California, to investigate concerns over the water levels this spring, going into the summer.
With the drought across California growing worse every week and most of the state in extreme or exceptional drought — not to mention a prolonged heat wave that has been affecting much of the region — some of the state's most critical reservoirs are drying out.
Lake Oroville, the second-largest reservoir in the state, is at just 38% of its total capacity. While this number is above the all-time low of 24.9% in September 1977, the lake is noticeably depleted, as AccuWeather National Reporter Bill Wadell saw firsthand when he made a visit there this week.
During a live appearance Wadell made on the AccuWeather TV Network, the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature was a sweltering 106 degrees at Lake Oroville, which is in Northern California, about 80 miles north of Sacramento.
"The lake is as low as I have seen it this time of year. Ever," Peggy Schultz, an Oroville resident, told Wadell.
The extremely low water levels in these crucial reservoirs have come as a bit of a surprise to the California Department of Water Resources (DWR). The Sierra snowpack, which melts down into the reservoirs in the spring and summer, was at roughly 59% of average this year, Wadell reported, but much of the runoff did not make it to the reservoirs.
Overall, California received about 50% of its average precipitation during the 2021 water year, according to an annual DWR survey conducted on April 1, making for the third-driest year in the Golden State's history.
"One of the things we clearly need to do is improve our forecasting so that we can do a better job of understanding how climate change is affecting what runs off and makes it to our reservoirs," said Jeanine Jones, the Interstate Resources Manager at the California Department of Water Services.
Dry hillsides surround Lake Oroville on Saturday, May 22, 2021, in Oroville, Calif. At the time of this photo, the reservoir was at 39 percent of capacity and 46 percent of its historical average. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
The low water levels at these reservoirs are concerning local residents who worry about the imposition of water restrictions in the coming months.
Officials at the California Department of Water Services are focused on managing the reservoirs to ensure that everyone has enough water this summer and fall. The department believes that it have should have enough water this year, but officials there are already concerned about the water supply in 2022, especially if 2022 becomes the third dry year in a row.
The hot and dry conditions across California have also increased concern about wildfires this year.
AccuWeather forecasters are predicting an active wildfire season across Northern California, Nevada, Utah and the Desert Southwest.
"We've been through three [wildfires] in the last four years that we've had to evacuate for," said Kasey Kelly, an Oroville resident.
AccuWeather's 2021 wildfire season forecast predicts an active and long-lasting wildfire season across many of the same areas that got hit hard in 2020, including the desert Southwest and Northern California.
Wildfire season begins in earnest across Northern California in June, with the risk spreading towards Southern California and the Pacific Northwest closer to August.
Reporting by Bill Wadell.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Weather News
Aerial photo shows major California reservoir 60% dried up
By Zachary Rosenthal, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Jun 4, 2021 8:46 PM EST
AccuWeather's Bill Wadell was in Oroville, California, to investigate concerns over the water levels this spring, going into the summer.
With the drought across California growing worse every week and most of the state in extreme or exceptional drought — not to mention a prolonged heat wave that has been affecting much of the region — some of the state's most critical reservoirs are drying out.
Lake Oroville, the second-largest reservoir in the state, is at just 38% of its total capacity. While this number is above the all-time low of 24.9% in September 1977, the lake is noticeably depleted, as AccuWeather National Reporter Bill Wadell saw firsthand when he made a visit there this week.
During a live appearance Wadell made on the AccuWeather TV Network, the AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperature was a sweltering 106 degrees at Lake Oroville, which is in Northern California, about 80 miles north of Sacramento.
"The lake is as low as I have seen it this time of year. Ever," Peggy Schultz, an Oroville resident, told Wadell.
The extremely low water levels in these crucial reservoirs have come as a bit of a surprise to the California Department of Water Resources (DWR). The Sierra snowpack, which melts down into the reservoirs in the spring and summer, was at roughly 59% of average this year, Wadell reported, but much of the runoff did not make it to the reservoirs.
Overall, California received about 50% of its average precipitation during the 2021 water year, according to an annual DWR survey conducted on April 1, making for the third-driest year in the Golden State's history.
"One of the things we clearly need to do is improve our forecasting so that we can do a better job of understanding how climate change is affecting what runs off and makes it to our reservoirs," said Jeanine Jones, the Interstate Resources Manager at the California Department of Water Services.
Dry hillsides surround Lake Oroville on Saturday, May 22, 2021, in Oroville, Calif. At the time of this photo, the reservoir was at 39 percent of capacity and 46 percent of its historical average. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
The low water levels at these reservoirs are concerning local residents who worry about the imposition of water restrictions in the coming months.
Officials at the California Department of Water Services are focused on managing the reservoirs to ensure that everyone has enough water this summer and fall. The department believes that it have should have enough water this year, but officials there are already concerned about the water supply in 2022, especially if 2022 becomes the third dry year in a row.
The hot and dry conditions across California have also increased concern about wildfires this year.
AccuWeather forecasters are predicting an active wildfire season across Northern California, Nevada, Utah and the Desert Southwest.
"We've been through three [wildfires] in the last four years that we've had to evacuate for," said Kasey Kelly, an Oroville resident.
AccuWeather's 2021 wildfire season forecast predicts an active and long-lasting wildfire season across many of the same areas that got hit hard in 2020, including the desert Southwest and Northern California.
Wildfire season begins in earnest across Northern California in June, with the risk spreading towards Southern California and the Pacific Northwest closer to August.
Reporting by Bill Wadell.
Related:
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo