Jeff Sutton of the Tehama-Colusa Canal Authority: Progress on the Sites Reservoir Project Sites Saddle Dams
County Road 68
Sites Saddle Dams
Road 69
Road 68
Road 68
Dunnigan
§ ¦5 ¨
§ ¨ ¦5
Colusa Basin Drainage Canal
Glenn County Colusa County
es
Lo
do
ga
Rd
Delevan Rd
Sites Reservoir
P igan Dunn
Golden Gate Dam
Penninsula Hills Rec. Area
Funks Reservoir (Existing)
Pump Station
e ipelin
Delevan Rd
Mile Rd
Si t
Colusa Basin Drainage Canal
Funks Creek TRR Pipeline
(2 Pipes)
Terminal Regulating Reservoir
one C o
r al
St
r
Sites Dam
McDermott Rd
Stone Coral Rec. Area
Cr ee
To Dunnigan Pipeline 1
Maxwell Glenn-Colusa Main Canal
Tehama-Colusa Canal
2 Miles
n e Co r
r al Creek
k
Maxwell Sites Rd
0
St o
Old Hwy 99
Sites Lodoga Road Bridge
Pump Station
Maxwell Rd
§ ¦5 ¨
Legend Dam Footprint
TRR Pipeline
Possible Recreation Areas
Dunnigan Pipeline
Inlet/Outlet Works Reservoir Realignment of Sites Lodoga Road - Option 1B New Access Road
An overview of the proposed Sites Reservoir and how it would connect to the TCCA’s existing system.
T
Irrigation Leader: Please tell us about your background. Jeff Sutton: I grew up right in the middle of the TCCA service area, in the small, rural town of Maxwell, California,
8 | IRRIGATION LEADER | October 2021
which has a population of about 800. My great-greatgrandfather and his brother, two pioneers from Missouri, headed west in 1870 to homestead the two original sections of our family ranch. My family has been here for a long time and has always understood the importance of irrigated agriculture in the arid West. My great-great-grandfather chaired the meeting and signed the document that created the organization that became the Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District (GCID), one of the oldest and largest water right holders and irrigation systems in California. My greatgrandfather represented our region as a California state senator for over 20 years and chaired the California Senate Agriculture and Water Committee for a significant portion of his tenure. Also, my father served on the GCID board of directors for 25 years. As you can tell, water is in my blood. I grew up around agriculture, working on the family farm. After high school, I attended college at the University of irrigationleadermagazine.com
PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE TCCA.
he Tehama-Colusa Canal Authority (TCCA), headquartered in Willows, California, is a joint powers authority (JPA) made up of 17 Central Valley Project (CVP) water contractors. The TCCA provides irrigation water to farmers throughout four counties along the west side of the Sacramento Valley, serving 150,000 acres growing a variety of permanent and annual crops. The TCCA is one of nine regional entities represented on the Sites JPA, which is supporting the construction of the proposed 1.5‑million-acre-foot Sites Reservoir. In this interview, TCCA General Manager Jeff Sutton tells Irrigation Leader about his agency and gives us an update on the progress of the Sites Reservoir Project.
