OROVILLE >> With what is expected to be a large storm approaching the north state, it remains unlikely that it will bring enough water to open the Oroville Dam spillway just yet.

Various agencies have come out this week cautioning the public of high winds and the chance of low-level snow in the valley with risks of power outages, hazardous road conditions and falling trees. Despite these conditions, the California Department of Water Resources has stated that it shouldn’t warrant the opening of the spillway.

“As most of the water content is going to appear as snow in the Sierra, DWR does not anticipate a rapid, immediate rise in Lake Oroville levels,” said DWR spokesperson Raquel Borrayo. “The lake will continue to rise as the snowpack begins to melt and runs into the watershed that feeds Lake Oroville.”

As of Wednesday morning, the lake had risen to 827 feet — just 73 feet from the top. Coincidentally, Lake Shasta was also 73 feet from the top early Wednesday.

Borrayo said opening the spillway relies on multiple factors such as any additional storms as well was the speed in which the snowpack, which is currently higher than the recent historical average, melts away.

“This is variable based on factors such as the frequency and amount of wet weather, the type of weather received — rain or snow, temperatures and even time of year,” Borrayo said. “Besides the physical capacity of the Lake Oroville reservoir, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sets conservation levels for flood control mitigation. During high points of the wet season, the conservation level is lower where a dam owner would be required to spill water to permit storage space for continued runoff. As we hit March 1, the conservation level increases steadily as the likelihood of frequent and continued heavy storms is reduced. The conservation level set by the USACE also increases during prolonged periods of dry weather, which we’ve had for a good period in February. USACE has a great tweet explaining this process for flood mitigation releases.”

While the storm likely won’t cause lake levels to rise to a breaking point, Borrayo said it, as well as previous storms this year, can help with refilling surface water storage.

“The January storms built the Sierra Nevada snowpack to above-average levels, which should also improve water storage levels when the snow melts this spring,” Borrayo said. “However, for every day it doesn’t rain or snow during our wettest months, we are drying out. A lot of uncertainty remains about the next month and water managers are maintaining reservoirs to balance the needs of communities and the environment as well as managing flood control requirements and preparing for spring runoff.”

Borrayo added that groundwater basins tend to take longer to recover and still likely have considerably more time before reaching full replenishment.