Kern River Archives - Page 7 of 17

Floods • Rivers

Not all Kern River water is being counted the same by water districts

July 26, 2023

• by Lois Henry

Farmers in an agricultural water district northwest of Bakersfield may have South Fork Kern River water stored in a local water bank. Or they may not. It depends on who’s counting the water. The Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage district says that since July 5, up to 37 cubic feet per second of South Fork Kern…

dams • Floods

The story of the Kern River this year was one of historic numbers, luck and long term plans paying off

July 26, 2023

• by Lois Henry

Despite a few white knuckle moments, the Kern River’s historic flows were successfully managed through a combination of incredible timing, long term planning and pure luck, according to Kern River Watermaster Mark Mulkay. During a detailed discussion of Kern River and Isabella Dam operations Tuesday before a packed room, Mulkay led the audience through the…

dams • Uncategorized

Isabella Dam officially off the No. 1 “at risk” dam list, what will that mean for downstream users?

July 20, 2023

• by Lois Henry

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officially lowered the risk level of Isabella Dam from “highest urgency and risk” to “low urgency” on Thursday. Though an Army Corps spokesman said this means Isabella has returned to “normal operations,” it’s unclear what exactly that will mean for downstream Kern River irrigators as we grind through summer…

Floods

Irrigators want to slow the flow of Kern River to bring Lake Isabella to its brim

July 12, 2023

• by Lois Henry

The question of whether Lake Isabella might “spill” has now turned to whether it will fill. The lake is achingly close to being full. It stood at 528,663 acre feet as of Wednesday afternoon – just 39,337 acre feet shy of its full capacity. But it needs to hit that max fill mark for the…

Uncategorized

Kern River flows to drop again after noise detected in Isabella Dam outlet tunnel

June 26, 2023

• by Lois Henry

Outflows from Lake Isabella into the Kern River will be cut to zero starting at 1 a.m. Tuesday so dam operators can check the source of “funny noises” coming from the outlet tunnel, according to Kern River Watermaster Mark Mulkay and an Army Corps of Engineers press release. “They’ve been hearing funny noises in the…

Floods

Kern River flows ramping down thanks to cool weather but will remain strong through the fall

June 9, 2023

• by Lois Henry

Cooler weather has slowed the anticipated snowmelt above Lake Isabella enough that outflows from the dam will ramp down to 6,500 cubic feet per second starting Sunday, according to Kern River Water Master Mark Mulkay. “We’ve been watching the snow surveys and weather up there and think we’re in really good shape to be able…

Floods

Floodplain projects are “foreign concept” for the south valley

May 26, 2023

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

One of the surest ways to corral flooding on the valley floor is floodplain restoration – letting rivers spread out over large swaths of undeveloped land to slow their flow and absorb the water. But even as cities and farms throughout the southern San Joaquin Valley brace for more flooding from an epic snowmelt after…

Floods • Uncategorized

Big melt may be less dramatic – and damaging – than initially thought

May 22, 2023

• by Lois Henry

State flood responders are still planning for the worst, but newly released inundation models are predicting a less dramatic and damaging snow melt as California heads into the summer months. On the Kern River, predictions are now showing releases from Isabella Dam can be maintained at 7,750 cubic feet per second, or less, throughout the rest…

Floods

Kern River headed to intertie Saturday after brief delay

May 18, 2023

• by Lois Henry

Kern River water is expected to go into the intertie, which connects the river to the California Aqueduct, starting Saturday morning. The goal is to keep more flood water from reaching the already flooded Tulare Lake bed in Kings County. The plan had been to begin dumping Kern River water at 500 cubic feet per…

Floods • Uncategorized

Kern County makes river flood maps available to the public

May 17, 2023

• by Lois Henry

The Kern River is rising fast and, so far, the public hasn’t been given very good information on the one question on everyone’s mind: Where’s it going to flood? Wednesday, the Kern County Office of Emergency Services put out detailed, locally built maps that attempt to answer that question under various flow scenarios. The upshot…

NEWS

Not all Kern River water is being counted the same by water districts

The story of the Kern River this year was one of historic numbers, luck and long term plans paying off

Isabella Dam officially off the No. 1 “at risk” dam list, what will that mean for downstream users?

Irrigators want to slow the flow of Kern River to bring Lake Isabella to its brim

Kern River flows to drop again after noise detected in Isabella Dam outlet tunnel

Kern River flows ramping down thanks to cool weather but will remain strong through the fall

Floodplain projects are “foreign concept” for the south valley

Big melt may be less dramatic – and damaging – than initially thought

Kern River headed to intertie Saturday after brief delay

Kern County makes river flood maps available to the public

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