Federal funding allocated to Sites Reservoir by the Biden Administration was released this week by the Trump Administration through the Bureau of Reclamation. The reservoir is planned for an area west of Williams in Glenn and Colusa Counties, and would hold up to 1.5 Million Acre-Feet of off-stream storage which would be diverted by canals and pipelines 17 miles from the Sacramento River. It would increase Northern California’s water storage capacity by up to 15%, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. Some environmental groups are still fighting the project, which they say will divert too much water from the Sacramento River and harm Salmon and other wildlife. The Biden Administration announced last month a new commitment of more than $500 Million toward water projects in the western states, $129 Million of which to be spent on the construction of Sites Reservoir. The Federal Government had already authorized a total of $234 Million and the Environmental Protection Agency said in 2022 that it would loan the project nearly $2.2 Billion to cover about half of the total cost. California voters had floated nearly a Billion Dollars in bond money as well. Officials with the Sites Project Authority say they’re nearing the start of construction, though no specific timeline has been announced yet. More information can be found at sitesproject.org.
-Steve Gibson