Press release from the Sites Project Authority
The Sites Project Authority announced that during the recent atmospheric river events, Sites Reservoir would have been filling, and it is estimated that Sites could capture more than 168,000 acre-feet of water from late December 2025 through the end of January 2026. This analysis continues to demonstrate the availability of water in the Sacramento River that can be safely diverted to bolster supplies for dry years and confirms the project’s ability to meet performance and funding expectations. The issuance of the water right order from the State Water Resources Control Board is the key approval necessary to move forward with building the project. Continued delays in the order’s issuance increase project costs by approximately $20 million per month.
Time is of the essence.
“Weather events like this highlight the critical role Sites Reservoir could play during wet years by capturing excess water when it is available and holding it for the dry times ahead,” said Fritz Durst, Chair of the Sites Project Authority Board of Directors. “As California faces increasingly intense storms, expanding our water storage capacity is essential to ensure reliability during dry times, which is why the Sites Project continues to move forward.”
Sites Reservoir is designed to capture and store water during wet periods, ensuring flexibility, reliability, and resiliency during dry years. Based on actual river flows, recent analysis found that Sites could have diverted more than 168,000 acre-feet in a single month, in addition to the 1.35 million acre-feet captured during the 2024 and 2025 diversion seasons (September through mid-June).
For perspective, one acre-foot of water exceeds the average annual indoor and outdoor use of two to three California households, according to the Water Education Foundation.
Sites is an off-stream reservoir proposed north of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, where it would provide unique water supply and environmental benefits during dry periods, especially during extended drought. Additional information can be found at www.sitesproject.org or on Facebook and Twitter at @SitesProject.
