Army Corps outlines New Bullard's Bar and Oroville water-control manual updates, NEPA to start in 2026

The Sutter Butte Flood Control Agency heard a detailed briefing from Jenny Fromm, chief of the water management section at the U.S. Army Corps's Sacramento District, about upcoming updates to the New Bullard's Bar and Oroville water control manuals. Fromm said the Corps derives its authority for flood-control operations from the Flood Control Act of 1944 and that water control manuals provide standing operational instructions for reservoir operators.

Fromm told the board the update process varies by type: administrative updates (contact and hydrology record updates), comprehensive updates (revising operations) and construction updates (where structural changes may alter operations). "A comprehensive update is approximately a four to five year process," she said, adding that NEPA review is typically the longest element, with "one year for an environmental assessment and two years for an environmental impact statement." She said the Corps plans to start NEPA later this year or "early 2026," with draft NEPA documents and draft manuals available about six months after NEPA begins and final manuals around mid-2027.

The Corps official explained technical components of manuals such as the water-control (rule curve) diagram and emergency spillway release diagrams that dictate daily flood-space calculations and gate operations during emergencies. She emphasized that the manual prescribes flood-control releases and objective flow locations, but that routine channel maintenance and levee upkeep are generally the responsibility of local owners. "If there's an issue downstream and we want to release 60,000 CFS out of Oroville, we would adjust depending on what that issue is," Fromm said, describing real-time coordination among the Corps, the Department of Water Resources, Yuba Water and the National Weather Service under the Forecast Coordinated Operations program.

Board members pressed for specifics on dam safety, climate considerations and sediment surveys. On oversight, Fromm said dam safety is the responsibility of the project owner; for Oroville, that is the California Department of Water Resources (DWR). On climate inputs she said study teams will consider relevant hydrology and available analyses, but that DWR conducts more detailed climate modeling.

Fromm pointed attendees to the project website and a QR code for documents and public information, and provided a contact email for the project manager, environmental lead and public affairs office for questions. The board did not receive public comment on the presentation.

The Corps identified the Flood Control Act of 1944 and engineering regulation ER 81-56 among key authorities guiding manual preparation, and noted that updates will include engineering reports and agency reviews before final approval. The board can expect more public materials as the NEPA process begins.