A third of U.S. reservoirs filling with sediment instead of water

Sediment accumulation in major U.S. reservoirs is reducing water storage capacity amid prolonged drought, threatening water supply for agriculture, hydropower, and municipal systems across the West.

First covered Sep 9, 2026 · 4:54 AM PT · 1 article · no longer in the live window

A third of U.S. reservoirs filling with sediment instead of water — Image via heatmap.news

Coverage

17d Heatmap News A Third of U.S. Reservoirs Are Filling with Sediment Instead of Water —

Primary sources

dep.nj.gov Nese (dep.nj.gov)

investor.williams.com Williams Breaks Ground Nese Project Deliver Reliable Affordable (investor.williams.com)

scottpeters.house.gov Peters, Evans Unveil Bill to Address Transmission Project Bottlenecks and Lower Electricity Costs

More coverage from around the web

bloomberg.com The US Is Losing Its Ability to Store Water When It Needs It Most

news.agu.org US water reservoirs are shrinking and becoming less reliable - AGU Newsroom

nature.com Reservoir sedimentation diminishes water storage and coastal delta resiliency | Nature Communications

bloomberg.com Wildfires and Extreme Rain Are Filling Up US Reservoirs with Dirt - Bloomberg

agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com Declining Reservoir Reliability and Increasing Reservoir Vulnerability: Long‐Term Observations Reveal Longer and More Severe Periods of Low Reservoir Storage for Major United States Reservoirs - Simeone - 2024 - Geophysical Research Letters - Wiley Online Library

Appeared in: 2026-09-09 (#8) · 2026-09-10 (#10)

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