: The Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) and the United States Society on Dams (USSD) are nationally and internationally recognized organizations consisting of dam engineering professionals who are committed to advancing the profession of dam engineering and dam safety.
On behalf of the U.S. and international profession and in a spirit of cooperation and support, the ASDSO and USSD leadership created a joint volunteer task group to perform an international search for and selection of the members of the Oroville Spillway Incident Forensic Investigation Team.
It is important to emphasize that 1) ASDSO and USSD contacted the California Department of Water Resources (CA DWR) to offer this assistance; and 2) the team of forensic experts was chosen by the joint organizational task group not only for its expertise but also for its independence.
The Investigation Team is tasked with fully examining all aspects of the spillway incident and offering expert views to both the public and to stakeholders without direction from DWR or other parties of interest.
Pertinent data is being provided to the Investigation Team and is currently under review by the team.
The ASDSO and USSD joint organizational task group emphasizes the need for a comprehensive, independent investigation to ensure that the possible causes of the incident are evaluated based on the most accurate and complete information available.
This includes two members selected for their expertise in how human and organizational factors may contribute to dam safety incidents.
These factors are a critical part of the investigation and will be addressed in the Investigation Team’s final report, which should be complete this fall.
The preliminary memorandum released in early May was not intended to serve as a report but rather a list of possible candidate physical factors that may have contributed to the spillway incident, so that these factors could be appropriately considered in the design and construction of the repairs.
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“That is all you can be — you never know what the weather is going to do,” said Todd Melanson, environmental compliance manager for the Chelmsford Water District.
The North Chelmsford Water District covers about 15 percent, with the remaining users in the East Chelmsford Water District.
“With the state experiencing above average precipitation for the past few months, and the continuation of best water conservation practices administered by the public, the Commonwealth’s water systems have finally reached normal conditions after two plus years of running a deficit,” Beaton said in the press release.
“And as we move into the warm-weather months, when water use is at its peak, we encourage water suppliers to work with their customers to continue their efforts to use water wisely.” Many factors Melanson has attended many meetings of the Drought Task Force, coalesced under the auspices of the Energy and Environmental Affairs.
“Keeping in mind that the conditions of last year were a culmination of the previous two years of well below-average precipitation in our specific area — with increased temperatures — were the leading reasons for the drought declarations by the State and for the pro-active District reaction of increased restrictions per our Summer Management Plan,” Melanson said.
“That can always change, and that is an overall look,” Melanson said.
In the past six years of graphs marking precipitation data, Melanson said three years — 2012, 2015 and 2016 — showed precipitation at “well below average.” The year 2014 rated as average, and 2013 was slightly above average, Melanson said.
In some cases, we changed our restrictions, because of our local conditions, and other places didn’t.” Restriction in effect An annual water restriction spans May 1-Oct. 15 in the Chelmsford Water District.
Currently that restriction, is also Level One — with corresponding odd and even-numbered watering days, and a choice of 6-9 a.m. or 6-9 p.m. Harper said, “This restriction is required by our water registration requirements with Massachusetts DEP.” The restrictions cover specific high-volume outdoor watering, such as with a garden hose or through irrigation.
“There is a level we have to maintain,” Melanson said.

No drought or dry conditions in NC for first time in more than a year.
RALEIGH, N.C. (WLOS) — For the first time since March 2016, all 100 of North Carolina’s counties have been determined to be free from drought or dry conditions.
“The recent rainfall has brought relief to the state, particularly southwestern North Carolina,” Linwood Peele, acting chairman of the N.C. Drought Management Advisory Council and the state’s Water Supply Planning Branch supervisor, said in a news release.
“Streams, groundwater levels and soil moisture have greatly improved, and counties are now experiencing near long-term averages.” The variables that determine drought are streamflow, groundwater levels, climate, the amount of water stores in reservoirs, soil moisture and the time of year.
In North Carolina, the council also considers impacts to the environment when it is recommending changing conditions to the state’s drought map.
These conditions are closely monitored and can rapidly change, especially during the hot summer months, which bring about higher evaporation rates.
To view North Carolina’s drought map, visit www.ncdrought.org.
To view the U.S. drought map, visit http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/.

For the first time since March 2016, all 100 North Carolina counties are free of drought or dry conditions.
“Streams, groundwater levels and soil moisture have greatly improved, and counties are now experiencing near long-term averages.” [Record-breaking rain brings dangerous flooding to Triangle; rivers rising] But the relief from drought comes at a cost for some in North Carolina, after torrential downpours from Hurricane Matthew in October and then storms in the first half of 2017 caused extensive flooding across the state.
Lack of drought conditions could ease the threat of wildfires in the state this summer.
While parts of North Carolina were inundated with floodwater following Hurricane Matthew last fall, the western part of the state was battling wildfires that scorched more than 60,000 acres.
Firefighters from across the state were brought in to help bring the fires under control in December.
Those conditions are closely monitored and can change rapidly, especially during hot summer months, which bring higher evaporation rates, according to the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.
[Hurricane Matthew was so devastating that there will never be another storm with the same name] “During the summer, North Carolina’s rainfall becomes more difficult to forecast,” said Michael Moneypenny, meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Raleigh and a member of the N.C. Drought Management Advisory Council.
“Weather systems are typically weaker at this time, and the bulk of our rainfall comes from scattered shower and thunderstorm activity that is not predicted but pops up during the heat of the day.” [Flooding widespread in NC as death toll rises to 20] Every week, the N.C. Drought Management Advisory Council discusses the state’s drought conditions and makes recommendations reflected on the North Carolina and U.S. Drought Monitor, a map of the country’s drought conditions released every Thursday at 9 a.m.
To see the U.S. drought map, go to droughtmonitor.uni.edu.
Abbie Bennett: 919-836-5768; @AbbieRBennett

Popular drought-resistant plants in short supply.
Have you been searching for a particular tree or shrub this year and just can’t seem to find it anywhere?
Local nurseries and growers are scrambling to keep up, but demand — especially for specific cultivars — has caused an extreme shortage of many sought-after plants.
With most of the drought water restrictions now removed, people are rushing to replace the plants they lost in the drought.
Many people also took advantage of rebates and took out all or part of their lawns.
To qualify for a rebate from the state or local water providers, the lawn had to be replaced with plants from an approved list.
There are salvias in every size and color, and even one for deep shade.
“Most people apply too little water, way too often,” Calhoun says.
A good rule of thumb, she says, is to apply twice the container size of water once a week.
Curtis Ferris, general manager at Soquel Nursery Growers in Soquel, says the drought has actually been good for for growers and consumers.

The Water Year’s Long, Cold, and Wet Goodbye Kiss to the Northwest’s Drought.
For the first time since 2011, the Pacific Northwest is not registering any sign of drought on the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Here’s what we know: The water year starts every calendar year on Oct. 1 (ending on Sept. 30 of the following calendar year).
This water year, the normally drier months of October, February, March and April were wetter than normal — much wetter — across the entire Pacific Northwest.
Unfortunately, heavy precipitation that early in the water year didn’t end the drought — that would come later — and it arguably did more harm than good.
However, most of this October’s precipitation fell as rain, not as snow that can accumulate in the mountains and then melt and run off later in the year.
Like rain in October, snow in December and January is not uncommon.
Whereas many of the drought years, especially 2015, were especially warm, this winter was especially cold.
In fact, this winter was the coldest winter on record in the Pacific Northwest since 1992-93.
So what was different about this year?

In summer 2010, Los Angeles was losing about 100 gallons of water per person per day to the atmosphere through the evaporation and plant uptake of lawns and trees.
Lawns accounted for 70 percent of the water loss, while trees accounted for 30 percent, according to a University of Utah study published in Water Resources Research.
The results, based on measurements taken before Los Angeles enacted mandatory watering restrictions in 2014, shows a pattern of systemic overwatering in the city’s lawns, and a surprising water efficiency in tree cover.
Evaporation + Transpiration = Evapotranspiration, or ET The water loss that Litvak and Diane Pataki, professor of biology, measured is best described as "evapotranspiration," a measurement that adds together the evaporation of water from soil and the release of water vapor, called transpiration, from plants.
Evapotranspiration (ET) rates depend on several factors, including plant type, temperature, humidity and the amount of water in the soil.
And according to Litvak’s measurements, LA’s soils were an abundant source of water.
Water loss from an over-irrigated lawn is that much and more, because transpiration from the grass pumps even more water from the soil to the atmosphere.
To measure ET from lawns, Litvak devised a shoebox-size chamber that could measure rapid changes of the temperature and humidity above the grass.
"I have been surprised that we can maintain the tree canopy of LA with relatively little water," Pataki says.
"Whether that changed people’s preferences for landscapes in a long-lasting way — that’s something we still need to study."

Sorghum has long been a staple food in many parts of the world, but in the U.S., it’s best known as a sweetener and livestock feed. As demand for the grain soars, so does the amount of waste husks. To reduce this waste, scientists report in the journal ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering a new use for it: a wool dye that can…

From the State Water Board’s CA Water Fix Hearing Team: Today we concluded Part 1 rebuttal and are cancelling hearing days until sur-rebuttal starts. Sur-rebuttal testimony and exhibits are due 12 noon, June 9, 2017 and the hearing will resume at 9:30 AM on June 15, 2017. Click here for the latest schedule. For more on the California Water Fix proceedings at the State Water Board, visit: http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/bay_delta/california_waterfix/water_right_petition.shtml Delta Cross Channel Gates Remain Closed through Memorial Day From the Bureau of Reclamation: The Bureau of Reclamation will keep its Delta Cross Channel Gates closed this Memorial Day weekend, which runs Friday, May 26 through Monday, May 29. The closure is due to persistent high flows in the Sacramento River system. Please be advised that the decision to open or close the gates can be made on short notice based on requirements. The Delta Cross Channel Gates control the diversion channel near Walnut Grove, about 30 miles south of Sacramento. When the gates are open, fresh water is drawn from the Sacramento River into…

Feds offer loans to farmers affected by drought.
LEE COUNTY, Fla. – Drought relief is in sight for local farmers — and we’re not talking about rain.
The loans are also offered to most private nonprofit organizations.
The disaster declaration includes the following counties: Baker, Brevard, Broward, Charlotte, Collier, Duval, Glades, Hendry, Indian River, Lake, Lee, Martin, Nassau, Orange, Okeechobee, Osceola, Palm Beach, Polk, Saint Lucie, Seminole and Volusia.
Droughts like these are game changers for former Red Sox outfielder Mike Greenwell, who owns 31 Produce.
"We’re using much more water than we’ve ever used," he said.
The cost to water his crops is costing Greenwell four times as much.
"Financially, it doesn’t even out," says Paige Greenwell.
Under the declaration, the SBA’s disaster loans apply to those effected starting March 21.
Interest rates for private nonprofit organizations are 2.5 percent and 3.150 percent for small businesses with terms of up to 30 years.