California Audit Reveals $28B Dam Repair Gap Amid Record El Niño Threat
A new state audit warns that 57 California dams are in poor condition, posing a potential $265 billion economic risk to 1.5 million people as a record-breaking El Niño approaches. Despite having enforcement powers since 2017, the Department of Water Resources has never penalized owners for neglect, and current funding is insufficient to address the $28 billion repair backlog.