Office of Public Participation Comment

The Oroville Dam 2017 Spillway Incident: Lessons from the Feather River Basin

Measuring Flow to Support New Interim Flow Requirements in the Shasta River

Angelina Cook For decades, stream flows in the Shasta River dropped to a fraction of historical levels every summer, no matter how wet the water year type. Now, a new law, AB 263, which took effect in September 2025, requires that sufficient quantities of water remain instream. This ensures that coho salmon will be less […]

Flood plain restoration below Camanche Dam

By: Eric Woodruff Fall-run Chinook salmon are currently migrating back to the Lower Mokelumne River to spawn. Many of these fish will be spawned in the Mokelumne River Fish Hatchery. But of those that spawn in the river, many will do so in reaches where there have been floodplain restoration efforts. Historical land use practices […]

Hydropower Reform: CSPA Goes to Washington, D.C.

The Hydropower Reform Coalition (HRC) has been advocating since the early 1990s for improved conditions in waters affected by hydroelectric projects. HRC advocacy has increased streamflows and made flow information public, achieved new and improved river access, and supported local communities where hydropower dams and other components of infrastructure are located. The California Sportfishing Protection […]

How fish ladders work – and why some do not

A fish ladder is a structure in a natural or artificial waterway that allows fish to pass to a destination, like the ocean or spawning grounds. The ladder can go up, down, or around an obstacle like a dam. Throughout California, the success of native fish species and plants and animals in habitats that relate […]

Water rights hearing for Delta Conveyance Project continues: update for September 2025 

Author: Chris Shutes The Delta Conveyance Project (DCP) hearing continues this month, scheduled for September 2, 5, 11, 15, 18, 19, 22, 29 and 30. Hearing dates are also scheduled for October 1, 6, 9, 10, 14, & 15. Additional proposed, but not confirmed, hearing dates are September 23 and October 20, 23, 27, 28, and 29. […]

Regulating water use in Klamath tributaries

Now that four dams previously blocking anadromous fish migration on the Klamath River are down, state and local agencies are negotiating the next stage of river restoration. They are acting to regulate the beneficial uses of water in overallocated Klamath River tributaries as equitably as possible. The Shasta River historically produced more salmon per unit […]

Celebrating the First Descent of the Undammed Klamath River

On July 11, 2025, after a month floating the free-flowing Klamath River 310 miles, a group of indigenous youth arrived at the river’s mouth. Theirs was the first expedition to boat the river from source to sea since the removal of the fourth dam on the Klamath River in September 2024. The boaters included young […]

Progress on Battle Creek is officially underway

In May 2025, the final iteration of the Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project launched. The launch follows years of delay and changing priorities in the wake of Pacific Gas & Electric Company’s (PG&E) 2018 decision not to seek a new license to operate the Battle Creek Hydroelectric Project. In a parallel process, May […]

PG&E proposes “rapid removal” plan for Cape Horn and Scott dams on the Eel River 

On January 31, PG&E released its draft license surrender application and decommissioning plan for the Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project in Mendocino and Lake counties. In the draft plan, PG&E proposes to remove Cape Horn Dam and the Scott Dam in Lake and Mendocino counties. Both dams are located on the Eel River. The dams block salmon and […]

State Water Board Takes Action to Protect Klamath River Salmon and Steelhead

On February 4, 2025, the California State Water Board issued Water Rights Order WR 2025-0002 settling longstanding disputes regarding the diversion of water from Stanshaw Creek, a tributary of the Klamath River in Siskiyou County. The Order found waste of water, unreasonable use of water, and unreasonable method of diversion.  Implementation of the Order will benefit Klamath […]