independent board of consultants (BOC) to review and comment on repairs to Oroville Dam. Memoranda (reports) prepared by the BOC are posted at the DWR web site. The independent forensic team (IFT) has been selected to determine the cause of the spillways incident, including effects of operations, management, structural design and geological conditions. According to its 2017–18 operations plan, the DWR maintained Lake Oroville at a lower-than-normal level to reduce the possibility that the spillway would have to be used the following winter. In a second phase of spillway repairs in 2018–19, temporary repairs on the main spillway done during phase one were being torn out and replaced with steel-reinforced structural concrete. On April 2, 2019, due to heavy rainfall upstream, the DWR began releasing water over the newly reconstructed spillway at a rate of 8,300 cfs. Releases were increased to 25,000 cfs on April 7 to test how the spillway performed in higher flows. They were decreased to 15,000 cfs on April 9. 2020 Safety assessment The DWR released an assessment, dated October 1, 2020, concluding that Oroville Dam was suitable for continued safe and reliable operation. Meanwhile, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has demanded that California submit a plan by September 2022, for addressing the issue of greater amounts of rain predicted in the future. 2020–21 drought Due to the low precipitation in the catchment area, water levels were below normal beginning in 2020. In August 2021, the Hyatt power plant had to be shut down because the water level fell below its water inlets. After falling to a record low of 22% capacity by September 30, winter storms increased the lake level by December and the plant was restarted on January 4, 2022. Operations Hydroelectricity Construction of the underground Edward Hyatt Pump-Generating Plant was finished shortly after the completion of Oroville Dam. At the time, it was the largest underground power station in the United States, with three 132-megawatt (MW) conventional turbines and three 141 MW pump-generators for a total installed capacity of 819 MW. The Hyatt Powerplant is capable of pumping water back into Lake Oroville when surplus power is available. The pump-generators at Hyatt can lift up to into Lake Oroville (with a net consumption of 519 MW), while the six turbines combined use a flow of at maximum generation. Since 1969, the Hyatt plant has worked in tandem with an extensive pumped-storage operation comprising