OROVILLE, Calif. (AP) Each year Lake Oroville helps water a quarter of the nation’s crops, sustain endangered salmon beneath its massive earthen dam and anchor the tourism economy of a Northern California county that must rebuild seemingly every year after unrelenting wildfires.
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Drought ravages California s water reservoirs ahead of hot summer
By ADAM BEAM
Lake Oroville starts June at drastically low levels
The low water levels are guaranteed to impact summer recreational boating, along with farms in California who rely on water outflows from the lake.
OROVILLE, Calif. - Each year Lake Oroville helps water a quarter of the nation’s crops, sustain endangered salmon beneath its massive earthen dam and anchor the tourism economy of a Northern California county that must rebuild seemingly every year after unrelenting wildfires.
But now the mighty lake a linchpin in a system of aqueducts and reservoirs in the arid U.S. West that makes California possible is shrinking with surprising speed amid a severe drought, with state officials predicting it will reach a record low later this summer.
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A home destroyed in the 2020 North Complex Fire sits above Lake Oroville on Sunday, May 23, 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. California officials say the drought gripping the U.S. West is so severe it could cause one of the state s most important reservoirs to reach historic lows by late August, closing most boat ramps and shutting down a hydroelectric power plant during the peak demand of the hottest part of the summer.
Noah Berger
Empty boat docks sit on dry land at the Browns Ravine Cove area of drought-stricken Folsom Lake, currently at 37% of its normal capacity, in Folsom, Calif., Saturday, May 22, 2021. California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a drought emergency for most of the state.