Surface Storage Projects Mark Progress by ACWA Staff Feb 27, 2025 Water News WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Trump Administration’s announced this week that it had released more than $315 million of obligated money to create new water storage at the future Sites Reservoir and at the existing San Luis Reservoir. “Both Reclamation and the Department of the Interior are committed to investing aggressively in projects such as Sites Reservoir and B.F. Sisk Dam Raise and San Luis Reservoir Expansion to improve water supply reliability for project contractors,” stated California-Great Basin Regional Director Karl Stock in a news release. The announcement marks the latest milestone in the Sites Reservoir Project’s progress. “Thanks to bipartisan support from our federal partners, we’ve been able to make significant progress on Sites Reservoir, which is now nearing the start of construction,” stated Fritz Durst, Chair of the Sites Project Authority Board of Directors, in a news release. “Sites Reservoir is a critical piece of California’s long-term water resiliency, and this funding helps move us closer to creating a reliable water source for our communities, farms, and environment.” Sites Reservoir will provide 1.5 million acre-feet of off-stream storage, capturing and storing excess flows from the Sacramento River. It is backed by a broad coalition of cities, counties, water agencies, and irrigation districts across California. The B.F. Sisk Dam Raise and Reservoir Expansion Project is being developed in partnership with the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority and aims to provide an additional 130,000 acre-feet of water storage once completed.
