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California Experiences Fifth Straight Month of Below Average Snow, Precipitation

/in , , /by /California Department of Water Resources

The Department of Water Resources today conducted the third manual snow survey of the season at Phillips Station. The manual survey recorded 56 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent (SWE) of 21 inches, which is 86% of average for this location. The SWE measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast.

“As California closes out the fifth consecutive dry month of our water year, absent a series of strong storms in March or April we are going to end with a critically dry year on the heels of last year’s dry conditions,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “With back-to-back dry years, water efficiency and drought preparedness are more important than ever for communities, agriculture and the environment.”

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California’s Wet Season Hasn’t Brought Much Drought Relief and the Outlook Isn’t Promising

/in , , /by /The Weather Channelby Linda Lam

California’s wet season has not brought much relief so far and the outlook is not promising.

The water year, which runs from October through April, started off slowly. October was the second driest on record for California. Later, strong systems – including an atmospheric river in late January that caused flooding, debris flows and feet of snow in the Sierra – brought needed moisture to the Golden State.

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Lack of Rain Could Potentially Impact Crops in the Central Valley

/in , , /by /Fox 26 Newsby Shelby Bracho

Crops are now blooming here in the San Joaquin Valley, which marks the beginning of harvest season for farmers.

As a drier-than-usual wet season continues to unfold, many are worried about how current drought conditions will impact this year’s crop.

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California’s Rainfall is at Historic Lows. That Spells Trouble for Wildfires and Farms

/in , /by /The Guardian by Katharine Gammon

There’s a race on in California, and each day matters: the precipitation during winter that fuels the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada and fills groundwater supplies has been slow to start, and faltering at best. Northern California remains stuck in one of the worst two-year rainfall deficits seen since the 1849 Gold Rush, increasing the risk of water restrictions and potentially setting up dangerous wildfire conditions next summer.

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Sierra Snow Grows, but Bay Area has 3rd Biggest Rainfall Deficit Since 1849

/in , /by /The Mercury Newsby Paul Rogers

California’s water picture is heading in two different directions.

A major storm last week and a more modest system Tuesday continued to boost the Sierra Nevada snowpack, the source of one-third of the state’s water supply, in promising ways. But the Bay Area and most cities across Northern California remain stuck in one of the worst two-year rainfall deficits seen since the 1849 Gold Rush, increasing the risk of water restrictions and dry wildfire conditions locally next summer.

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Greater San Diego Could Get 1.5 inches of Rain from Atmospheric River

/in , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Gary Robbins

Greater San Diego could get 1.5 inches of rain from an “atmospheric river” weather system that will flow ashore Thursday night and last through Friday, when it also will leave a few inches of snow on the county’s highest mountain peaks, says the National Weather Service.

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Snow Blankets the Mountains and Winds Shut Down COVID-19 Vaccinations Near Petco

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Gary Robbins and Karen Kucher

One of the biggest coastal wind storms in years walloped San Diego County Monday and ushered in heavy snow that blanketed the region’s mountains and driving rain that nudged wildland areas away from the precipice of drought.

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Rain, Snow Arrives in San Diego With More to Come

/in , , /by /NBC 7 San Diego Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

San Diegans got a taste of winter weather Saturday.

“We were actually excited when we saw the rain,” said Forest Padilla, a San Diego resident.

The cold showers lasted throughout most of the day.

“It’s nice to have the rain every once in a while,” said Travis Robertson-Howell, a San Diego resident.

But it may be even nicer to have it a little more often. The latest drought map from the National Integrated Drought Information System showed much of the San Diego region is experiencing abnormally dry conditions.

Luckily it doesn’t appear to show drought in the area. The rest of the state isn’t so lucky. According to the map, drought exists in some way in approximately 95 percent of the state. The state was drought-free at this time last year.

“At this point in the winter it is still fairly early,” said Mike Lee, public affairs manager with the San Diego County Water Authority.

Lee says it’s too soon to raise concerns.

“Just a few storms can radically improve and change the water supply conditions in the snowpack in the mountains,” said Lee. “That can happen in February, sometimes in March, and even April.”

And even if we don’t get all the rain we need, he says the county has a back-up plan.

“Every five years we go through a rigorous planning process at the county water authority and with all of our member agencies across the region to ensure that even if we were to have three, four dry years in a row that we would still have enough safe reliable water to meet our region’s needs,” said Lee.

So for now, Lee says San Diegans can enjoy the wet weather as he expects more is to come.

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Why It’s Way Too Early to Worry About Rain Deficits in SoCal

/in , , /by /Spectrum News 1 Los Angelesby Jacqueline Bennett

Yes, it’s been pretty dry so far this winter, but there is no need to worry. The major winter storm that roared through Southern California Monday proved we can erase a month’s worth of rain deficit in one day. I recently explained how the climate where we live — the Mediterranean Climate — sees the majority of its annual rainfall in the winter months. In fact, a whopping 80% of Southern California’s annual rain and snow falls from December through March.

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dry start-snowpack survey-water year-Guzman-primary

Dry Start to California’s Water Year

/in , /by

A dry start to California’s water year is reflected in the season’s first snow survey of the Sierra Nevada snowpack. The statewide snowpack is 52% of average for Dec. 30. On average, the Sierra snowpack supplies about 30% of California’s water needs.

The California Department of Water Resources manual survey at Phillips Station recorded 30.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 10.5 inches, which is 93% of the January 1 average at that location, according to DWR officials. The snow water equivalent,or SWE, measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast.

While the Phillips Station measurement was positive, DWR’s electronic readings from 130 stations placed throughout California show the statewide snowpack’s SWE is 5 inches, or 52% of the December 30 average.

“The snow survey results reflect California’s dry start to the water year and provide an important reminder that our state’s variable weather conditions are made more extreme by climate change,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “We still have several months left to bring us up to average, but we should prepare now for extended dry conditions. The Department, along with other state agencies and local water districts, is prepared to support communities should conditions remain dry.”

Water supply diversity meets regional demand

“The first snowpack survey of the water year points to California’s climate variability, which is why a diverse water portfolio is needed to provide a reliable supply,” said Goldy Herbon, San Diego County Water Authority senior water resources specialist. “The Water Authority and its 24 member agencies have successfully diversified water sources, and continue to expand those sources, to ensure our supply meets the needs of the region’s 3.3 million people and its $245 billion economy.”

The supply sources include water from the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant, where ten workers volunteered to live on-site in 2020 to keep the water flowing during the coronavirus pandemic.

Sierra Nevada Snowpack-Snow Water Content

Climate change brings less snow

When the Sierra Nevada snowpack melts, it feeds into rivers and is stored in reservoirs across California. Reservoirs are tapped as needed during the dry months. However, state officials again said that climate change is affecting California’s snowpack, as more precipitation falls as rain and less as snow. And they urged Californians to make water conservation a “way of life.”

“Today’s survey brought a first glimpse of how the state’s snowpack is shaping up, but there is a lot of winter still ahead,” said Sean de Guzman, chief of DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section. “While the dry conditions during late summer and fall have led to a below average snowpack, it is still encouraging to have the amount of snow we already have with two of the three typically wettest months still to come.”

DWR conducts five snow surveys at Phillips Station each winter near the first of each month, January through April and, if necessary, May. Guzman said the next survey is scheduled for February 2.

dry start-snow survey-water year

Sean De Guzman (R), chief of the California Department of Water Resources Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section, and Jeremy Hill, DWR water resources engineer, conduct the first snow survey of the 2021 season at Phillips Station in the Sierra Nevada. Photo: Kelly M. Grow/DWR