Northern California's water infrastructure secures $40 million to enhance drought resilience

(UI) — Rep. Mike Thompson has announced that two water storage and conveyance projects in Northern California, Sites Reservoir and Los Vaqueros Reservoir, are receiving $30 million and $10 million respectively in funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

“The funding for Sites and Los Vaqueros announced as part of the Investing in America agenda will help provide our families, farmers, and communities with the water resources we need to combat drought and live healthy lives,” Thompson said. “When I was in the State Senate, I appropriated the first funds for the Sites Reservoir, and this funding will help move the project forward.”

The Sites Reservoir Project will receive $30 million to pursue off-stream storage capable of accommodating up to 1.5 million acre-feet of water in the Sacramento River system, located in the Coast Range mountains west of Maxwell, California.

The reservoir would utilize new and existing facilities to move water in and out of the reservoir, with ultimate release to the Sacramento River system via existing canals, a new pipeline near Dunnigan, and the Colusa Basin Drain.  

Additionally, $10 million will go to the Los Vaqueros Reservoir Expansion project to efficiently integrate approximately 115,000 acre-feet of additional water storage through new conveyance facilities with existing facilities. This expansion is expected to allow Delta water supplies to be safely diverted, stored and delivered to beneficiaries.  

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is investing a total of $8.3 billion over five years for water infrastructure projects, including water purification and reuse, water storage and conveyance, desalination and dam safety. The Inflation Reduction Act is investing an additional $4.6 billion to address the historic drought.

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