The unresolved federal relicensing of Oroville Dam involves an existing project that supplies water and power statewide while imposing costs county officials estimate at about $20 million annually. Photo courtesy of Department of Water Resources

OROVILLE, CA (MPG) – Hundreds of comments and an overflow crowd brought concerns about potential data centers to the Butte County Water Commission, but commissioners and speakers were warned that a decades-old issue involving Oroville Dam could carry far greater consequences for the county's water and economy.

The commission received 592 electronic comments on data centers before its Aug. 5 meeting. County officials stressed that Butte County has received no application for a data center in its unincorporated area and has not been approached about one.

By contrast, the unresolved federal relicensing of Oroville Dam involves an existing project that supplies water and power statewide while imposing costs county officials estimate at about $20 million annually.

Jim Graden, the domestic well representative on the Vina Groundwater Sustainability Agency board, pointed to the California Water Plan and warned that future demands on Northern California's surface and groundwater could dwarf those being discussed in connection with data centers. He said the data center demands will pale in comparison and urged the commission and Board of Supervisors to closely follow state planning efforts involving groundwater storage and aquifer recharge.

Earlier, Butte County Public Information Officer Christy Olio outlined the county's case over Oroville Dam, arguing that commitments made when the project was developed more than half a century ago were never fulfilled.

She said the state of California and Butte County made a deal. Butte County held up its end and the state did not.

Original plans envisioned extensive recreation facilities meant to offset economic losses from thousands of acres removed from the tax base, including beaches, boat ramps, campsites, restaurants, a golf course and other attractions intended to draw millions of visitors. Many were reduced, delayed or never built. The county now estimates the project's economic burden at about $20 million annually, including lost property taxes from roughly 41,000 acres and costs tied to public safety, roads and infrastructure.

Urgency has grown because the California Department of Water Resources continues to operate the Oroville facilities under annual federal license extensions while seeking a new long-term license. Supervisors escalated their efforts earlier this year by supporting the Hydropower Licensing Transparency Act, S. 3500, which would require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to report annually to Congress on pending hydropower licensing and relicensing applications. County officials say the extensions leave safety, recreation, environmental obligations and community impacts unresolved.

The county's letter also cited continuing financial burdens from emergency services, rescue costs and lost property tax revenue, as well as the 2017 spillway emergency that forced the evacuation of about 180,000 people.

Board Chairman Bill Donnelly highlighted the county's growing public campaign surrounding relicensing and a website explaining the history and local impacts. He described Oroville Dam as the biggest bathtub in the California water system and said Butte County has never been compensated or made whole.

Olio told the Water Commission the stakes now extend beyond recovering past losses. A new federal license could govern the project for another 50 years, making the current process a rare chance to secure enforceable commitments.

She said before another 50-year license is issued, it is time for the state to uphold its end. Butte County is not asking for special treatment. The county is asking for the original promise to be kept.

Supervisor Tod Kimmelshue, whose district includes Gridley, Biggs and much of southern Butte County's agricultural area, also returned to broader water issues during his Aug. 11 report. He noted the attention data centers received at the Water Commission meeting and in the press while pointing to Oroville Dam relicensing as a more urgent issue facing the county.

Kimmelshue said county representatives planned to travel to the nation’s capital later this month to discuss licensing, while data center concerns that dominated the Water Commission meeting remain hypothetical in unincorporated Butte County.

Development Services officials confirmed data centers are not allowed use under the zoning ordinance, and any proposal would require an ordinance change and a public process. Yet, water commissioners and the public urged county officials as well as those in Butte County’s incorporated cities to stay proactive and preemptive on the prospect of data centers and all new proposals that affect both groundwater and surface water.