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Klamath National Forest Snowpack at 16% of Historic Average as Drought Conditions Persist

/in , , /by /KDRVby Brett Taylor

Record low snowpack levels continue to plaque the state of California as dry and unseasonably warm temperatures continue to persist.

According to measurements taken by the U.S. Forest Service for the April survey, in the Klamath National Forest, the snowpack is at 16% of the historic average snow height (snow depth) and at 18% of the historic Snow Water Equivalent (“SWE”, measure of water content) across all survey points.

Weather continued to be relatively dry through March and although several small storms did pop up across the area during the month, unseasonably warm temperatures kept the local snowpack below normal level.

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Newsom’s Drought Order Poses a Big Question on Water Well Permits for Valley Farmers

/in , , /by /The Sunby Don Wright

California’s Governor Gavin Newsom released Executive Order N-7-22 on March 28, 2022 in response to the state’s ongoing drought conditions. It is effective immediately and covers the entire state.

The entire order could perhaps be viewed as part five of his four previous drought related executive orders from 2021.

 

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Few Strong Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers Reach California

/in , , /by /Water News Network Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

Few landfalling atmospheric rivers in the current water year have reached California, now in the third year of a statewide drought.

The latest update from the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, shows that Water Year 2022 started strong in October, but weaker storms did not ease dry conditions.

landfalling atmospheric rivers-drought-CW3E-science

Few Strong Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers Reach California

/in , /by

Few landfalling atmospheric rivers in the current water year have reached California, now in the third year of a statewide drought.

The latest update from the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, shows that Water Year 2022 started strong in October, but weaker storms did not ease dry conditions.

landfalling atmospheric rivers-drought-CW3E

Landfalling atmospheric rivers

The CW3E report, Distribution of Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers over the U.S. West Coast During Water Year 2022: Summary Through March, was published April 7.

“While Water Year 2022 began with an exceptional AR over California in October, the state only experienced strong or greater magnitude AR conditions FIVE times, resulting in three straight water years of below normal activity,” according the report.

The report shows that the “lack of impactful events over consecutive years” – water year 2021 and water year 2020, combined with the current water year, has resulted in three straight years of below normal activity. Bottom line: If California hoped strong atmospheric rivers would end the current drought this water year, that’s not happening, at least so far. And the two previous years were a bust, creating extremely dry conditions across the state.

CW3E and Water Authority partnership

The San Diego County Water Authority partnered with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, at UC San Diego in 2020 to better predict atmospheric rivers and improve water management before, during, and after those seasonal storms. The Center and its partners share best practices in forecast-informed reservoir operations, increased research around atmospheric rivers and droughts, and develop strategies for mitigating flood risk and increasing water supply reliability.

“Through our partnership with CW3E and the AR forecasting tools they’ve developed, it better prepares us in management of our water resources using regional storage,” said Jeff Stephenson, Water Resources Manager with the San Diego County Water Authority, in 2021. “This storage, in conjunction with developing multiple water supply sources in the San Diego region, has prepared us for years when rainfall levels are below normal in the region.”

landfalling atmospheric rivers-drought-CW3E-research-science

For additional details and graphics go to: https://bit.ly/38rSTNE.

Atmospheric rivers-drought-California drought-climate

(Editor’s Note: Atmospheric river analysis by Chad Hecht, Julie Kalansky, & F. Martin Ralph. This analysis is considered experimental.)

‘Vast Majority’ of California’s Sierra Snowpack Could Be Gone by Mid-to-Late April

/in , , /by /SFGATEby Amy Graff

The heat is on.

Record-breaking temperatures are expected across California Thursday and Friday with the mercury rising up to 25 to 30 degrees above normal.

UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain referred to the sweltering weather as a “major early spring heat wave” and said it may be “most consequential in the Sierra Nevada” where the snowpack is already well below normal after a record-dry January, February and March, experts said.

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The Colorado River Basin Looks to Be Locking in Another Dry Year

/in , , /by /The Colorado Sunby Chris Outcalt and Margaret Fleming

The Colorado River Basin looks to be headed for a third straight dry year, according to the April report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Colorado Basin River Forecast Center.

Although the weather in March was more active than it was in January and February, it continued a trend of either below or well-below normal precipitation across much of the Colorado River Basin, according to Brenda Alcorn, a hydrologist at the NOAA forecast center.

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Record Drought Conditions Across West Raise Concerns for Summer Dry Season

/in , , /by /NOAA by National Centers for Environmental Information

The current multi-year drought across the West is the most extensive and intense drought in the 22-year history of the U.S. Drought Monitor. Precipitation deficits during the first three months of 2022, across parts of the western U.S., are at or near record levels. As the climatological wet season ends across portions of the West, with below average snow cover and reservoirs at or near record-low levels, concerns for expanding and intensifying drought and water resource deficits are mounting.

During March, the average contiguous U.S. temperature was 44.1°F, 2.6°F above the 20th-century average. This ranked in the warmest third of the 128-year period of record. The year-to-date (January-March) average contiguous U.S. temperature was 36.3°F, 1.2°F above average, ranking in the middle third of the record.

The March precipitation total for the contiguous U.S. was 2.26 inches, 0.25 inch below average, and ranked in the driest third of the 128-year period of record. The year-to-date precipitation total was 5.66 inches, 1.30 inches below average, ranking seventh driest in the January-March record.

Temperatures were above average across much of the West and along the East Coast. California ranked sixth warmest for the January-March period.

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California’s Worsening Drought Could Disrupt Hydropower Electricity Generation This Summer

/in , , /by /CBS Los Angelesby Darleene Powells

California’s drought is getting worse — and the drying lakes and reservoirs could severely disrupt the state’s ability to generate electricity ahead of the hot summer months.

California’s energy commission says the state gets 10% of its electricity from power plants at dams along lakes and reservoirs. But when there’s no water, those plants are unable to generate power.

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Looking Out for Water Ratepayers in San Diego County

/in , , /by /Fallbrook Village News Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

Every year at this time, water agencies launch the long and thoughtful process of setting rates for the next year. It’s always complex and challenging – and 2022 is an even more challenging year due to larger economic uncertainties that are compounded by inflation.

The good news is that the San Diego County Water Authority strategically invested in supply reliability in decades past when costs and inflation were lower – and we are reaping the benefits of those investments during the worst megadrought in 1,200 years.

Further, the Water Authority’s locally controlled sources have cost-control measures built into the contracts to help guard against sudden price increases.

 

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Assessing the U.S. Climate in March 2022

/in , /by /National Centers for Environmental Information

The current multi-year drought across the West is the most extensive and intense drought in the 22-year history of the U.S. Drought Monitor. Precipitation deficits during the first three months of 2022, across parts of the western U.S., are at or near record levels. As the climatological wet season ends across portions of the West, with below average snow cover and reservoirs at or near record-low levels, concerns for expanding and intensifying drought and water resource deficits are mounting.

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