California Shuts Down Major Hydropower Plant Amid Surging Drought

California Shuts Down Major Hydropower Plant Amid Surging Drought
Low water levels are visible at Lake Oroville in Oroville, Calif., on July 22, 2021. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Vanessa Serna
Updated:

California’s hydroelectric power plant at Lake Oroville was ordered to shut down on Aug. 5, after the reservoir reached record low water supply levels.

It’s the first time the Hyatt Power Plant has been offline as a result of low water levels, Department of Water Resources (DWR) Director Karla Nemeth said.