Read about the earthquake risk.


“Anywhere in California, an earthquake could happen, and I would not be extremely surprised,” Hellweg said.

There are two ways a reservoir can cause an earthquake. A rapid filling or emptying of a lake can change the weight pushing on a fault, which can make an earthquake more likely, said Bill Leith, acting associate director on natural hazards at the USGS.

“Especially for a reservoir as large as Oroville, it’s a huge weight on the crust that’s basically being pulled up and down on an annual cycle. So it wouldn’t be surprising if there were earthquakes associated with that,” Leith said. “The rapid filling, I just think it increases the risk. … I would expect that a rapid rise or a rapid fall in the water level would be much more likely to trigger earthquakes.”

On the other hand, Lake Oroville has been dealing with seasonal changes in water levels for nearly half a century, and for the most part, it has been seismically quiet. “It appears to be a relatively stable system,” Leith said.

[link to touch.latimes.com]