The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will begin closing the gates at Red Bluff Diversion Dam, allowing Lake Red Bluff to fill to its normal elevation by noon today.
The dam, located about 2 miles southeast of Red Bluff, diverts water from the Sacramento River to the Corning and Tehama-Colusa canals. The diversion dam gates are scheduled to be closed for about two and a half months for irrigation purposes. They will be open for the remainder of the year to allow unimpeded fish passage for salmon, steelhead and sturgeon.
A major project to improve fish passage at the dam broke ground in March. The $220 million project, which includes construction of a fish screen, forebay and pumping plant, will provide a reliable water supply for 150,000 acres of high-valued crops in Tehama, Glenn, Colusa and northern Yolo counties. The project is expected to be completed in December 2012.
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will begin closing the gates at Red Bluff Diversion Dam, allowing Lake Red Bluff to fill.
The new pumping plant facility that is being constructed with the latest contract is designed with an ultimate capacity to deliver 2,500 cubic feet per second (cfs) of water from the Sacramento River into the Tehama-Colusa and Corning Canals to irrigate 150,000 acres of high-valued crops in Tehama, Glenn, Colusa, and northern Yolo counties. The initial installed capacity of the pumping plant will be 2,000 cfs.
More on the project is available here.