OREGON HOUSE, Calif. (Mar. 6, 2026) – Yuba Water Agency and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response have completed the containment and removal of oily debris from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Englebright Lake following the Feb. 13 rupture of Yuba Water’s penstock pipe above New Colgate Powerhouse.
During the nearly three-week cleanup effort, crews installed large debris and oil booms in the upper stretch of Englebright Lake, about a mile downstream of New Colgate Powerhouse, to capture and hold floating debris. Barges equipped with an excavator and large bins were then used to collect and remove oily materials from the water. Smaller boats also supported debris removal by hand.
In total, crews filled approximately 80 large waste bins, removing about 1,600 cubic yards of debris. Cleanup teams also recovered approximately 44 gallons of mixed oil with light petroleum content from on-water debris. 307 gallons were recovered in intact barrels that did not leak into the water.
“During our final on-water survey, we saw no visible oil or other hazardous debris on Englebright or upstream,” said Lieutenant Ryan Hanson of CDFW’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response. “Our teams can also confirm that oily debris remained contained within the cleanup area and did not enter the lower Yuba River. We are really pleased with how this response went and how much of the oil was recovered – it’s rare to have such a high percentage of material recovered.”
“I’m really proud of our entire team for how quickly we responded to contain this oily debris and how efficiently we executed this cleanup,” said Willie Whittlesey, Yuba Water’s general manager. “We were on the water with booms the morning after the incident and have been working in partnership with CDFW and our environmental contractors every day since. With this aspect of the incident complete, we can put even more resources toward the investigation into what happened and the long-term recovery at our powerhouse and adjacent facilities.”
Independent testing of water samples collected from Englebright Lake and multiple locations along the Yuba River continues to show no detections of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), petroleum hydrocarbons or volatile organic compounds, chemicals associated with petroleum-based and industrial materials. Other baseline water quality parameters – turbidity, temperature, acidity and oxygen – also remain normal.
Over the next several days, crews will remove the remaining containment booms and demobilize large barges and equipment from the lake.
Boat ramp access is anticipated to be restored by mid-March.
Read the latest on Yuba Water’s ongoing response to its penstock rupture at engage.yubawater.org.