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Miracle or Mirage? Atmospheric Rivers End California Drought Year With Heavy Snow and Rain

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Hayley Smith

After the driest start to any year on record, California will end 2022 with snow-capped mountains, soaked roadways and — in some places — flood warnings. The soggy end to an otherwise bone-dry year came as something of a surprise. Only weeks earlier, officials sounded the alarm about a rare third appearance of La Niña — a climate pattern in the tropical Pacific that is often associated with dry conditions in the state.

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Storms Boost Snowpack as First Survey Nears

/in , , /by /Western Farm Press

Reporters who slog through a meadow near Lake Tahoe next week for California’s first manual snow survey of the season will find copious amounts of snow. The state Department of Water Resources’ electronic readings on Dec. 29 showed a statewide snowpack at 156% of normal as a persistent parade of storm clouds has pelted the West Coast in December.

 

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‘Extra Winter’s Worth of Precipitation’ Needed to Bust California Drought, Scientist Says

/in , , /by /Fox Weatherby Hillary Andrews

Some western residents are breathing a sigh of relief after recent atmospheric river storms have drenched the drought-parched region, and more are on the way. However, scientists caution that it is too early to celebrate. “At this point in time, we still have another four or five months in our snow season and in our typical rainy season,” said Andrew Schwartz, lead scientist at the Central Sierra Snow Lab.

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How Colorado River Cities Are Preparing for Shortages With Conservation and Alternate Sources

/in , , /by /The Arizona Republicby Brandon Loomis

The grass beneath the palm trees at the Foothills has no function other than to look lush and inviting for people driving up to the gated community’s entrance. The homeowners’ association there, like many that govern such developments dating to the 1980s and 1990s, was still sprinkling Colorado River water on about 50,000 square feet of turf this year.

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Snow Study: Researchers Examine Factors Impacting Sierra Nevada Snowpack

/in , /by /Tahoe Daily Tribuneby Claire McArthur

Eight of the top 10 warmest years on record occurred in the last decade. The snowline where rain turns to powder continues to move uphill. The dry season is longer than ever as wildfires ravage forests and communities. It’s a bleak outlook for the state of the Sierra Nevada snowpack, not to mention our planet as a whole.

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‘The Brink of Disaster’: 2023 is a Critical Year for the Colorado River as Reservoirs Sink Toward ‘Dead Pool’

/in , /by /CNNby Ella Nilsen and Rachel Ramirez

Deep uncertainty looms over the Colorado River and the 40 million people who depend on it for their water supply as the basin enters a critical year that could determine its future stability. Plagued by decades of overuse and human-caused climate change, demand for the river’s water has vastly outpaced its supply.

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How Record Snowfall Could Soften the 2023 Drought Season

/in , /by /NPRby Ari Shapiro

NPR’s Ari Shapiro talks with Andrew Schwartz of the UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab about how record snowfall in western states could mean a less drought-ridden 2023.

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Could West Coast’s Atmospheric River Help Undo Drought Conditions? Too Early to Tell, Experts Say

/in , , /by /ABC Newsby Teddy Grant

The atmospheric river currently impacting the West Coast, while creating dangerous weather conditions for millions of people, could possibly have a chance of temporarily reversing drought conditions in states that desperately need water, experts say. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration describes atmospheric rivers as “rivers in the sky” because they’re somewhat long and narrow regions in the atmosphere that send most of the water vapor outside the tropics.

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California Had a Watershed Climate Year, But Time is Running Out

/in , , , /by /Inside Climate Newsby Liza Gross

California made historic investments in climate measures this year, as state leaders warned of current and escalating climate risks. “We’re dealing with such extremes that all our modeling, even updated modeling, needs to be thrown out,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom when he signed more than 40 bills to fight climate change in September. “The hots are just so much hotter. The dries are so much drier.”

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Interior Invests $84.7M for 36 Drought Resiliency Projects

/in , /by /WaterWorld

The Department of the Interior announced $84.7 million in funding for 36 drought resiliency projects in the West. The investment supports the development of innovative drought resilience efforts, such as groundwater storage, rainwater harvesting, aquifer recharge, water reuse, ion exchange treatment, and other methods to stretch existing water supplies.

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