Emergency: California’s Oroville Dam Spillway Near Failure, Evacuations Ordered

Breitbart ^ | Feb 12, 2017 | Joel B. Pollak1

[janetjanet998]

The California Department of Water Resources issued a sudden evacuation order shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday for residents near the Oroville Dam in northern California, warning that the dam’s emergency spillway would fail in the next 60 minutes.

The Oroville Dam is the highest in the nation.

[meyer]

FERC’s website says a document can be made confidential if it “gives strategic information” related to “the production, generation, transmission, or distribution of energy” or could be “useful to a person planning an attack on critical infrastructure.”

That's a very loose rule on FERC's part. I've seen it in effect before. Maps of power transmission lines removed from the public domain, yet the towers and conductors are obvious in real life. Images of nuclear plants are "verbotten", but Google Maps, Bing Maps, and others show exactly where the plants are. Not to mention the snapshots I acquired from the water just because I could. :)

I'm in the power industry. We are beholden to certain requirements in terms of disclosing information. And I agree, but things that are obviously visible don't lend themselves to being hidden.

My opinion is that CA DWR is hiding behind NERC rules to avoid public disclosures of certain "issues" involving the dam, and more specifically, the spillway(s). There's a lot of past transgressions here.

[meyer]

I’ll add this - I have a transmission line running across my property, and a steel transmission tower 30 feet behind my property line. It wouldn’t take a lot of genius to carry out nefarious activity on that structure, though in the grand scheme of things, it wouldn’t do squat to the transmission grid in general. But a bad guy might not know that.

On the other hand, a bad guy might not know that I actually look at the tower from time to time and would report nefarious activity. That’s how us electrical guys roll.

[EarthResearcher333]

So here is the flip side.... By the article bringing up DWR referencing a FERC "security" regulation clause that, includes "attack", DWR now has another battle front to deal with. If DWR doesn't show any sign of action regarding such a "security" concern, the default assumption space becomes what Bill Connelly** stated:

"“I think there’s a history of deceit and a history of keeping us in the dark,” Connelly said. “DWR has been very careful not to let the locals know what actually what was going on it. ... Why be secretive about it?”

DWR is in a political Catch-22 situation. To gain trust they must act and respond honestly based on what they are saying to the public. They could dig themselves into a hole real quick as there is nowhere to hide in this intense public interest crisis (dam & spillway).

**Member - Butte County Board of Supervisors

[meyer]

Yes - credibility goes down the drain when people believe that they are being kept in the dark. Although government gets away with that to a certain extent, on a local level, it is much harder. Because unlike the distant DC, these “officials” are in the neighborhood. They’re local, near the people.

DWR has a tough job of maintaining the integrity of a public entity, of being truthful with the people, while simultaneously hiding things that are good targets for bad actors.

[EarthResearcher333]

btw- I'll predict: Youtube videos are going to go wild in speculation over this. Both from the FERC regulation quoted, AND from speculation on what the Mar 24 BOC report states. Even speculation of a "leak" from a purported insider can fuel a PR firestorm.

They better up the pay on that "We're Hiring" DWR PR person job.

[EarthResearcher333]

Workers likely setting up "survey" paint stripes to measure spillway drain outlet water flow

Picture titled by DWR: "DWR utility craftworkers Gary Hage and Chris Williams prepare a section of Lake Oroville flood control spillway for survey marking. Photo taken March 31, 2017"

They are likely going to paint jig outline horizontal stripes at the large sidewall drain outlets. These precise width & spacing "survey" lines will help facilitate water flow assessment & analysis of the drain outflow during spillway operation. Knowing the total drain waterflow from each outlet drain is useful as this may be compared to the 3D subslab voiding data along with the calculated seam & crack penetration estimations.

Monitoring all of the drain outlets will require keeping someone busy with camera work (drone?) + pre-setup ladders. Camera work imaging may be more challenging on the east hillside as there doesn't seem to be a good footpath along the side wall backside or up on the hill. I'd look for camera mounted tripod setups if they want simultaneous data collection. Either that or someone is going to be very busy flying a drone around.

DWR utility craftworkers Gary Hage and Chris Williams prepare a section of Lake Oroville flood control spillway for survey marking. Photo taken March 31, 2017. Note the size of the drain outlet.

DWR utility craftworkers Gary Hage and Chris Williams prepare a section of Lake Oroville flood control spillway for survey marking. Photo taken March 31, 2017.

[abb]

This pic confirms that the collection drains appear to be in the 12” dia range.

[piroque]

Yes , read a lot of his stuff , http://www.thedeadpelican.com/

[meyer]

Some time in the evening, the flow rate through the Hyatt was reduced slightly from around 13,000 cfs to 12,000 cfs.

I wonder if they’re experimenting with the release valves - probably not, but it would be nice to know if they were available to assist. Last I had read, they were out of commission to upgrade fire protection equipment in that part of the dam/plant structure.

[mad_as_he$$]

I spent some time yesterday trying to determine - positively - some information regarding the condition of the works in the power plant station. Very sketchy and now regular updates regarding repair/maintenance activity. Sloppy information and controls. Seems to be the standard in the operation.

[meyer]

Sounds to me like the plant operation is under a different chain of command, and they do not wish to share much information with the public. About all we get are the net outflows in cfs every hour.

[EarthResearcher333]

THIS is the DWR letter that triggered the response in a block of the public's ability to review the latest report from the independent panel of experts (functional "security" weakness)

These FERC document images reveal that a "Project Safety Compliance Report" submitted by CA Department of Water Resources, March 22, is the key to triggering a "Critical Energy Infrastructure Information" secrecy status. It was from a "structural inspection". This DWR submitted report was 2 days before the Board Of Consultants' independent experts' March 24 mini-report memo that was dated March 24 (and to be released) - BUT the PSCR report, submitted by DWR, two days earlier, resulted in the CEII secrecy status of both the PSCR and the BOC March 24 new report.

The investigative press will eventually figure out what is blacked out. I assure you that this will intensify the firestorm of inquiry as it opens up a new front of public concern ("structural issue as security weakness"). Side note: the file size of the "secret" structural investigation is 4.62 Megabytes (not a small report).

Note: The "functional security weakness" is real, but it is a very special case scenario that I believe could have been dealt with in a different way. Instead, politics may have come into play and now it has been elevated to a level where it is now become a "shield" (via CEII status) to releasing BOC's new spillway report information. The scrutiny will only intensify upon DWR from the public, the press, and frustrated politicians.

DWR Letter to FERC re: "Critical Energy Infrastructure Information" upon completing a "structural inspection" - THIS is what DWR is using to block public's ability to review the latest report from the independent panel of experts (defining a functional "security" weakness)

FERC official denotation of "CEII" status of all reports linked to the original "Project Safety Compliance Report" (via Accession number tree) - message below is permission denial to the designated secret/confidential CEII information.

[EarthResearcher333]

Reiteration Follow-up: The “security weakness” scenario may be possible. Whatever the decision path was to triggering this CEII status, even if someone didn't have a choice, the actionable follow-up to the reality of what this CEII is based upon requires -> (1) They should enhance security access routes to the dam (military grade security to stop kinetic vehicular breach attempts).

You can't have it both ways... if you trigger a CEII status (based on the structural vulnerability), you must follow through with the required precautionary action.

If NO precautionary action is taken, then this non-action would be perceived as using this CEII "scenario" as just a way of keeping secret the new BOC report.

[Repeal The 17th]

For someone with nefarious intent, there are literally thousands
of soft infrastructure targets scattered across the U.S.A.
There is nothing unique in that respect for Oroville.

[janetjanet998]

most models agree another AR event starting next friday and into next sunday for much of the west coast

this will likely mean at least TWO more(instead of one more) spillway releases

[EarthResearcher333]

"There is nothing unique in that respect for Oroville."

The key point is that DWR's letter has triggered this CEII status just as the new BOC expert panel's report was to be made public. DWR's PR situation is now in a political Catch-22 squeeze play. To earn the trust of the people, they have to respond appropriately & honestly. If someone chose this "secrecy" triggering political path, they must fulfill the trust in their subsequent actions.

AS for the "nothing unique".... a nefarious group or source may believe otherwise in that easily disabling an infrastructure item that affects near 2/3 of the water system for the state of California; could render an unfixable condition well past 2017; and possibly bankrupt the state as did the 1861-1862 flooding disaster... you might say that this puts it at the peak on a "list" of dream targets to resulting consequences.

I know what the blacked out items are.. I know the risk.. and the ease of it.. believe me, this scenario can happen.

Side note: I agree there are many infrastructure risks as "soft targets" distributed across the US. But the relative simplicity of the nefarious "action" to the magnitude of the disastrous results places it in a very unique class.

btw- thanks to you & all for the prior good wishes/prayers - I'm in an up & down cycle, was in ER a few days ago. Just killing time right now until the ticker chooses what it's going to do this time around. :-)

[Repeal The 17th]

For the last couple of years, I have to go in every 6 months to be monitored for
3 aortic aneurysms and a heart valve that does not want to close correctly.
Every day is a gift from GOD.

If I put on my Dr. Nefarious hat and use my Dr. Evil imagination,
I can see a lot things that scare me around the country.

[meyer]

I would offer up that while the power plant within the Oroville dam might be considered Critical Energy Infrastructure, the spillway is not. In my opinion, of course.

They’re painting the complex with a very wide brush.

[meyer]

If I put on my Dr. Nefarious hat and use my Dr. Evil imagination, I can see a lot things that scare me around the country.

You and me both. Myself and a co-worker of equally devious mindset looked out the 7th floor window at a building across the street where they just happen to have an underground operations center. We came up with a couple of ways that it could be severely damaged from above despite there being large vehicle-blocking piers around the area.

Heck, I learned yesterday that you can bring down a section of highway with, well, with the pile of wood I have in the back yard if nothing else.

You just hang in there, and don't worry about stuff too much. Is there a surgical procedure that would help you out? I know, not my business, but I'm always looking for solutions. And I'm sure that you are too.

[abb]

Every day is a gift from GOD.

Amen to that, my FRiend.