Increase in Release (#4)

11:45 pm USBR INCREASED Release of Water to 25,000 cfs

United States Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) advised SYRWCD that due to continued aggressive storm runoff and the forecast of additional of storm cells over the watershed at Lake Cachuma, they adjusted spillway releases to 25,000 cfs at 11:45 pm. They will continue to monitor reservoir elevation and runoff as the storm develops.

Reclamation also answered questions that had been raised regarding the transit time of increased water to The Narrows and Lompoc.  They advised that as their experience with "89-18" water rights releases shows, it is not easy to predict the exact transit time from Bradbury Dam to The Narrows, but the gate testing on 2/8/2023 had a transit time of 23 hours. Since the transit time tends to shorten with higher flows,  the current transit time is anticipated to be between 4 and 23 hours.

Here is a link to see the Santa Ynez River water levels with USGS Stream Sensor at Lompoc Narrows

• Santa Ynez River at Lompoc Narrows

Increase in Release (#3)

7:45 pm USBR INCREASED Release of Water to 20,000 cfs

United States Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) advised SYRWCD that due to continued aggressive increases in the storm runoff at Lake Cachuma they have adjusted the spillway releases to 20,000 cfs at 7:45 pm. They will continue to monitor reservoir elevation and runoff as the storm develops.

**Increased from 2,000 cfs Thursday to 20,000 cfs late evening on Friday.

Follow the Santa Ynez River water levels with USGS Stream Sensors. Here are the links:

• Santa Ynez River at Los Laureles
• Santa Ynez River at Solvang (Alisal Bridge)
• Santa Ynez River at Lompoc Narrows

 Increase in Release (#2)

At 6:45 pm:

At 6:45 pm, due to continued aggressive increases in the storm runoff at Lake Cachuma, Reclamation increased the Spillway release down the Santa Ynez River to 15,000 cfs ** at 6:45 pm, Friday, February 24, 2023.  They will continue to monitor the reservoir elevation and runoff as the storm develops. 

**Increased from 2,000 cfs Thursday to 15,000 cfs early evening on Friday.

 Increase in Release (#1)

At 5:15 pm:

United States Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) advised SYRWCD that due to the peak of the storm arriving sooner and more stong than earlier projections, Reclamation increased the Spillway release water from Lake Cachuma down the Santa Ynez River from 2,000 cfs to 8,000 cfs at 5:15 pm on Friday, February 24, 2023.

County of Santa Barbara - Public Works

• Hydrology Section
  • Real-time Rainfall, River-Stream, and Reservoir Data
    • Real-time Rainfall Table
    • Real-time Reservoir Levels (map)
    • Real-time Stream Flow (map)
  • Rainfall & Reservoir Summary (Santa Barbara County Flood Control District)
  • Remote Cameras - Santa Barbara FCD (see latest images)

United States Bureau of Reclamation: Cachuma Daily Operations Table

Here is a LINK to  Reclamation's Cachuma Daily Operations Table: a daily summary of storage, inflows, and quantity of water released per outlet location from Cachuma Reservoir.