DWR says that costs not covered by FEMA will be paid by the State Water Contractors. That's the group of 27 urban and agricultural water agencies that get water from the State Water Project, of which Oroville Dam is the key facility.

Mellon said Friday the spillway-related costs may continue to "evolve," based on changing conditions or new requirements for the massive project. Work on the main spillway is about half complete, and Kiewit's crews are focusing during the winter months on a massive concrete-pile wall on the slope of the badly eroded emergency spillway. The contractor is also preparing to place a 22-acre "splash pad" on the slope immediately below the massive concrete weir at the very top of the emergency spillway hillside.

One of those unforeseen costs this year could be the potential "corrective action" that DWR says may be needed on three of the 234 concrete spillway slabs placed during the 2017 construction season.

Ted Craddock, a DWR deputy director who has been put in charge of the Oroville reconstruction project, said in a statement he read during the media call that the concrete in the three slabs "did not cure as anticipated." Craddock said the curing problem grew out of an unscheduled outage of a batching plant at the construction site that prevented crews from placing the concrete within the required time and "hot, high winds (that) dried the surface of the slabs before the contractor could finish final surfacing work."

Mellon said in a follow-up email that DWR is consulting with Kiewit and regulators to decide "if remediation is necessary and what that work would include."

Cracking in many of the 234 newly placed concrete slabs came to light last fall when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which oversees the Oroville facilities, asked DWR to explain the cracks and what it planned to do about them.</s>SAN FRANCISCO — California officials say the costs of dealing with last February's near-disaster at the tallest dam in the country have climbed to $870 million.

That's up from the $500 million total that the state estimated last fall. Both spillways at the Oroville Dam collapsed in February, forcing officials to order nearly 200,000 people to be evacuated.

Department of Water Resources spokeswoman Erin Mellon says California still hopes that federal emergency funds will cover three-fourths of the cost. Mellon says the costs so far do not include more than $1 billion in legal claims filed by property owners downstream.</s>SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – California officials say the costs of dealing with last February’s near-disaster at the tallest dam in the country have climbed to $870 million.

That’s up from the $500 million total that the state estimated last fall. Both spillways at the Oroville Dam collapsed in February, forcing officials to order nearly 200,000 people to be evacuated.

Department of Water Resources spokeswoman Erin Mellon says California still hopes that federal emergency funds will cover three-fourths of the cost. Mellon says the costs so far do not include more than $1 billion in legal claims filed by property owners downstream.

WHAT OTHERS ARE CLICKING ON:
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• GET KRON4 NEWS ON YOUR AMAZON ALEXA DEVICE</s>SAN FRANCISCO — The costs of dealing with last year's near-disaster at the nation's tallest dam have reached $870 million, say California officials.

The figure for emergency response and repairs following the crisis at northern California's Oroville Dam should stand, Erin Mellon, spokeswoman for the state Department of Water Resources, said Friday. The total was pegged at $660 million in October.

Both spillways at the 230-metre earthen dam collapsed in February, forcing evacuation orders for nearly 200,000 people downstream. Officials feared massive, uncontrolled releases of water, but they did not materialize, and residents were allowed to return to their homes within days.

A report by independent dam-safety experts blamed the crisis on state operators' and regulators' "long-term systemic failure" to recognize built-in design and construction flaws in the half-century-old dam.

Mellon says California still hopes federal emergency funds will cover three-fourths of the cost, which includes about a half-billion dollars the state is spending to repair and improve both spillways.

Friday's jump in the overall price tag comes from expenses that include the removal of massive amounts of debris left by the torrents of water released from Oroville's reservoir during the crisis, Mellon said.

Other new costs in the total include moving power lines connected to the dam's hydroelectric system and building access roads for repair crews.

The price tag does not include more than $1 billion in legal claims filed by property owners downstream, Mellon said.

The water behind Oroville Dam is part of a complex north-south delivery system that serves millions in central and Southern California. The state still intends for water contractors who draw supplies from that system to pay any emergency costs refused by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Mellon said.</s>The costs of dealing with last year's near-disaster at the nation's tallest dam have reached $870 million, California officials said Friday.

The figure for emergency response and repairs following the crisis at Northern California's Oroville Dam should stand, said Erin Mellon, spokeswoman for the state Department of Water Resources. The total was pegged at $660 million in October.

Both spillways at the 770-foot (230-meter) earthen dam collapsed in February, forcing evacuation orders for nearly 200,000 people downstream. Officials feared massive, uncontrolled releases of water, but they did not materialize, and residents were allowed to return to their homes within days.

A report by independent dam-safety experts blamed the crisis on state operators' and regulators' "long-term systemic failure" to recognize built-in design and construction flaws in the half-century-old dam.

Mellon says California still hopes federal emergency funds will cover three-fourths of the cost, which includes about a half-billion dollars the state is spending to repair and improve both spillways.

Friday's jump in the overall price tag comes from expenses that include the removal of massive amounts of debris left by the torrents of water released from Oroville's reservoir during the crisis, Mellon said.

Other new costs in the total include moving power lines connected to the dam's hydroelectric system and building access roads for repair crews.

The price tag does not include more than $1 billion in legal claims filed by property owners downstream, Mellon said.

The water behind Oroville Dam is part of a complex north-south delivery system that serves millions in central and Southern California. The state still intends for water contractors who draw supplies from that system to pay any emergency costs refused by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Mellon said.

Construction crews had worked early morning to late night to make both damaged spillways operable again before California's winter rainy season started.

The Department of Water Resources has noted three flaws in the rush repair job so far, deputy director Ted Craddock said, and is evaluating the seriousness of the problems and how to handle them with a team of consulting dam experts.

Officials said problems in the new repairs include "surface imperfections" in three of the 234 concrete slabs laid so far to repair the 3,000-foot (900-meter) spillway, whose failure in February left deep canyons of rock and earth gouged through the concrete and surrounding hillside.

Dam operators said the kind of strong, searing winds that drove record-setting wildfires in California late last year had made the concrete set too fast.</s>Oroville Dam’s battered flood-control spillways have been largely rebuilt, but the cost of last February’s near-disaster keeps rising. On Friday, state officials put the total price tag at $870 million.

The latest figure from the California Department of Water Resources represents a 32 percent increase from DWR’s estimate in October, when the cost was pegged at approximately $660 million.

State officials insist the climbing price tag is not from unexpected cost overruns. Instead, DWR spokeswoman Erin Mellon said the agency has finally been able to estimate the cost of recovery work that includes removal of debris from the Feather River channel below the dam; relocation of power transmission lines; staff time and other work that’s been undertaken since last winter’s crisis. Those costs came to $210 million.

“So it’s not a jump in costs at all,” she said.

Of the total $870 million cost, the largest expense is the reconstruction of the dam’s two badly damaged flood-control spillways. Mellon said the reconstruction work, which is proceeding in two phases and is expected to be completed this fall, is expected to cost $500 million. That estimate hasn’t changed since last October. …

Click here to read the full article from the Sacramento Bee</s>SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — The cost of last year’s Oroville spillway emergency continues to grow. The new numbers from the Department of Water Resources show an increase of nearly 25 percent from earlier estimates.

In October the total cost of the project was estimated at $660 million. Through January 2019, DWR now says the project will tally $870 million.

“It’s possible that the number could change it could increase, it could decrease,” said Erin Mellon with the Department of Water Resources.

She says the additional costs include debris removal, power line replacement, staff time, and permit fees.

“It always existed. We just didn’t have an estimate,” said Mellon.

“Stay tuned. There will be millions more come down the pike before this is done,” said state Sen. Jim Nielsen.

Nielsen says DWR hasn’t yet priced ancillary work. He says levees must be fixed and river banks restored after they were destroyed by the massive release of water in February.

“In terms of getting it right, there is no history of the state ever coming close,” said Nielsen.

The Federal government reimburses 75 percent of the costs related to the emergency, but the former acting head of DWR told an oversight committee last May that FEMA won’t cover some costs.

“Is there a maintenance issue here? Because they’re not going to cover that,” said Bill Croyle to the committee of legislators in May. “But if it’s emergency response, they’re going to cover. So then it’s all about the documentation.”

A team of independent forensic investigators announced last month that the spillway disaster happened in part because of a lack of maintenance.

“We are going to keep submitting costs to FEMA, emergency costs until they tell us otherwise,” explained Mellon.

To date, $86 million has been refunded out of $115 million in requests. Work on the spillway and emergency spillway will continue for at least another 11 months.</s>With the Kouga Dam down to 7.7% of capacity yesterday, a team will start testing water quality this weekend to help gauge any future contamination if fish start dying.

The dam supplies water to Patensie, Hankey, Nelson Mandela Bay and farmers in the Gamtoos River Valley.

Gamtoos Irrigation Board (GIB) chief executive Pierre Joubert said samples would be taken, starting on Sunday. The level of the Kouga Dam had fallen to 7.1%, but was boosted slightly by rain on Monday.

The dam used to extend 42km up the Kouga River west of Patensie, but is now just 10km long.

The low water level and high, steep sides of the dam do not make access to the surface easy but GIB’s staff would let themselves down by ropes and use a boat to get to a suitable sampling spot, Joubert said.

“Fish haven’t started dying yet, but I’m afraid they could if the water keeps on dropping and that could result in a serious health threat.

“We will be doing the sampling approximately twice a week, so this initial step is to get us in the mode and establish a baseline reading.”

When the dam was filled in 1970, the trees were not removed and many are still slowly rotting in the water and consuming oxygen.

As the water drops, the oxygen available to the fish will be reduced still further and if the process continues, the indigenous kurper and eels and alien bass, carp and barbel could die.

Joubert said if fish did start dying, it would not be easy to drag the carcasses out with a net because of the submerged trees.

“I do not know what the answer will be. The dam has never been this low before so we’re in new territory.” The dam channels water to Nelson Mandela Bay via a canal and the small Loerie balancing dam near Thornhill.</s>FARMINGTON - Selectmen reviewed early cost estimates associated with the Walton's Mill Dam project and discussed funding at Tuesday's meeting.

Temple Stream, which was dammed by the 1820 structure to create Walton's Mill Pond, was designated a critical habitat for the endangered Atlantic salmon by the National Marine Fisheries Service in 2009. Atlantic salmon is the only species of salmon native to the east coast of the U.S. and only one percent of the historical population remains.

Given the designation, the town's options are to either remove the dam or construct a fish passage. The Atlantic Salmon Federation, which has been meeting with town officials over the past year regarding the issue, prefers removing the structure. If the town goes that route, the ASF would secure funding. According to John Burrows from the ASF, his organization would work with other foundations and federal agencies to raise the funds to remove the dam, building a park around the site and replace culverts on Cummings Hill Road and Clover Mill Road. The town has had significant issues in the past with those culverts, which feed Temple Stream and are considered essential to the health of the waterway.

Burrows said that ASF would work with town officials to acquire some of the funds from state grants, when applicable. For example, Department of Environmental Protection funds could be used to replace the culverts.

The costs of removing the dam have been estimated at $400,000, while the park's design and construction would be roughly $455,000. Burrows said that the ASF would also create a $20,000 endowment to assist in maintaining the park in the future. The cost of replacing the culverts would total $330,000, two-thirds of that for the Cummings Hill Road culvert and the remainder for the Clover Mill Road culvert. The total cost of the project, covered by secured funding, would be $1.2 million.

The ASF would try to assist with the fish passage option, Burrows said, should the town decide to proceed in that direction. However, he estimated that the ASF would only be able to raise something in the $25,000 to $30,000 range, as that was not the preferred option for the conservation of the species. The total cost of the fishway construction is estimated between $200,000 to $380,000, with the town carrying most of the cost.

The additional issue is that the dam itself, a 20-foot tall structure, is believed to need significant repair. Fixing the dam, which would be required if it wasn't being outright removed, has been estimated to cost $350,000. That would increase the fishway option to $550,000 to $720,000 in cost, with Farmington responsible for raising most of the money.

Whichever option Farmington chooses, action on the dam is likely years away. It is expected to take ASF time to raise funds. Planners from the town and federation have developed a working design for the park based off comments at the public meetings the process has generated. That park would be located at the site of the current park, and would include an open-air, pole barn structure, adequate parking and artifacts from the site displayed throughout the green area. A chunk of the retaining wall that sticks out beyond the dam, Burrows said, would be left in place.

The next public meeting on the subject is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 6:30 p.m. at the Community Center.
The cost of the Oroville Dam spill rises to US$870 million. The U.S. state of California continues to hope for federal aid for the project.