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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Partnerships between water utilities, irrigation districts and other stakeholders in California will play a critical role in funding new infrastructure under the Water Resilience Portfolio Initiative announced in 2020 by Gov. Gavin Newsom, but a new study warns that benefits might not be evenly distributed without proper structure to the agreements.
California’s initiative is a multi-billion dollar effort that encourages different water utilities and irrigation districts to work together to build shared infrastructure to ameliorate the effects of droughts, but a number of questions remain regarding how best to structure these agreements.
California is in the third year of drought and water agencies and officials statewide are urging residents and businesses to increase their water conservation. Governor Gavin Newsom has called on all Californians to voluntarily reduce their water use by 15% with simple measures to protect water reserves.
California’s wet season wrapped up as a big disappointment, setting the stage for a third year of drought.
Most of the state — about 96% — was categorized as having severe drought conditions as March came to a close, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. The continuing drought suggests more water restrictions are forthcoming as supplies run low.
