These 42 California dams face safety issues that have led to storage restrictions

While California has over 1,500 dams across the state, 42 are restricted in how much water can be held in their reservoirs. With an average age of about 100 years, these restricted dams are in fair or worse condition. Nearly half are at extreme risk of flooding communities that house 1,000 or more people if the reservoir were full and the dam failed, so that's why the state imposes restrictions.

Clicking a point on the map will provide more details about that dam.

Note: Details about why each dam is restricted and actions by owners is current as of Sept. 2023. Capacity restrictions and percentage of capacity lost is compiled from data sent by California Department of Water Resources, but it may not reflect other restrictions from other agencies or storage lost to sedimentation.

  • Source: California Department of Water Resources, Division of Safety of Dams
  • Credits: Arfa Momin, CalMatters; John Osborn D'Agostino, CalMatters