USGS Water-Year Summary for Site 11407000

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Water year 2023: 2022-10-01 to 2023-09-30

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USGS Water-Year Summary 2023

11407000 Feather River at Oroville, CA

LOCATION - Lat 39°31'18", long 121°32'48" referenced to North American Datum of 1927, Butte County, CA, Hydrologic Unit 18020159, in Boga Fernandez Grant, on right bank, 300 ft upstream from Fish Barrier Dam on Feather River, 0.4 mi downstream from Thermalito Diversion Dam, 0.8 mi northeast of Oroville Post Office, and 4.8 mi downstream from Oroville Dam.

DRAINAGE AREA - 3,624 mi².

REVISIONS HISTORY - WSP 843: 1907 (instantaneous maximum discharge), 1909 (instantaneous maximum discharge), 1914-15 (instantaneous maximum discharge), 1919 (instantaneous maximum discharge), 1927-28 (instantaneous maximum discharge). WSP 881: 1913-28 (yearly summaries). WSP 1515: 1906-8. WSP 1931: Drainage area. WDR CA-74-2: 1968-70 (adjusted monthly discharge), WDR US-2007: 2006 (adjusted monthly discharge), WDR US-2008: 2007 (adjusted monthly discharge), WDR US-2013: 2012 (adjusted monthly discharge). Revised monthly mean, adjusted and acre-ft, adjusted, for unreviewed evaporation, change in contents, and diversions in and out of Lake Oroville, Thermalito Diversion Pool, Thermalito Forebay, and Thermalito Afterbay (11406970) for October 2011 to September 2012, given below. These figures supersede those published in the report for water year 2012.

SURFACE-WATER RECORDS

PERIOD OF RECORD - October 1901 to current year. Monthly discharge only for some periods, published in WSP 1315-A. October 1934 to September 1961 published as "near Oroville."

CHEMICAL DATA: Water years 1906-07, 1951-77.

SPECIFIC CONDUCTANCE: Water years 1972-78.

WATER TEMPERATURE: Water years 1954-92.

SEDIMENT DATA: Water years 1957-79.

GAGE - Water-stage recorder. Datum of gage is 148.97 ft above NGVD of 1929 (levels by California Department of Water Resources). See WSP 1931 for history of changes prior to Oct. 1, 1964.

COOPERATION - Records were collected by California Department of Water Resources, under general supervision of the U.S. Geological Survey, in connection with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission project no. 2100.

REMARKS - Flow completely regulated by Lake Oroville (station 11406800), beginning November 1967, and Thermalito Diversion Pool (station 11406825), capacity 13,500 acre-ft. Diversions upstream from station for power and irrigation. Feather River Fish Hatchery (station 11406930) diverts up to 120 ft³/s at Thermalito Diversion Dam 0.4 mi upstream from gage. Daily figures shown are combined figures of river flow and diversion to fish hatchery. Beginning with the 1968 Water Year, daily mean values of flow are the combined flows of the river and the diversion to the fish hatchery. Maximum peak flows are river-only flows. See schematic diagram showing diversions and storage from Feather River at Lake Oroville available from the California Water Science Center.

EXTREMES OUTSIDE PERIOD OF RECORD - Flood on Feb. 12, 1879, reached a stage of 11.7 ft; discharge not determined; flood in February 1881, reached a stage of 25.0 ft; discharge not determined; flood on Mar. 9, 1884, reached a stage of 13.0 ft, discharge not determined; flood on Dec. 23, 1884, reached a stage of 13.8 ft; discharge not determined; flood on Dec. 25, 1885, reached a stage of 15.7 ft, discharge not determined; information supplied from Magnitude and Frequency of Floods in the United States, Part 11, Vol. 2 (USGS Water-Supply Paper 1686).

EXTREMES FOR PERIOD OF RECORD - Prior to completion of Oroville Dam: Maximum discharge observed, 230,000 ft³/s, Mar. 19, 1907, elevation, 167.5 ft above NGVD of 1929, site and datum then in use, minimum, 300 ft³/s, estimated, Nov. 9, 1931. Since completion of Oroville Dam: Maximum daily discharge, 132,000 ft³/s, Feb. 18, 1986; minimum daily, 222 ft³/s, Sept. 19, 1972.