Righetti

About Righetti

Righetti is a dam in San Luis Obispo, California. The dam is owned by Dave, Craig, Scott, And Don Righetti (private). It impounds the W Corral De Piedra.

The dam stands 83 feet tall and stretches 1,200 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 29 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 735 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 4 square miles. Completed in 1966, the structure is well into its service life at over 50 years old.

This dam carries a high hazard potential classification, which means that a failure or uncontrolled release of water would likely cause loss of human life. This classification reflects the consequences of failure, not the likelihood — it indicates that people live or work in the area downstream. Its condition is rated satisfactory, indicating no existing or potential dam safety deficiencies are recognized. Notably, no emergency action plan is currently on file for this high-hazard dam. The most recent inspection on record was 01/28/2025.

At 83 feet, this dam is taller than 97% of all dams in the United States.

Living Downstream

If you live or work downstream of this dam, consider taking these steps: learn your local evacuation routes, check whether your county emergency management office has a dam failure inundation map, and sign up for local emergency alerts. The California dam safety program can provide more specific information about emergency planning for this structure.

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