The storms that wafted their way through the Los Angeles Basin this month–with more light showers expected today–have not had a discernible effect on the drought now entering its fourth year.
It was hoped that the series of early-winter downpours would lesson worries about water rationing, but the precipitation patterns have again shifted to dry and dismal throughout the Golden State. December was a rainfall boom; San Francisco saw 16 days of rain last month (10.66 inches) which was 6 inches above normal, and Sacramento racked up 8.6 inches of rainfall, or 5.35 inches above normal for the month. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) said on Thursday that this winter’s snowfall “doesn’t look like it will provide much water this spring.”
The Sierra snowpack is reportedly running only 25 percent of normal in terms of liquid water equivalent. The mountain snowpack serves the California central valley and coastal areas as winter water storage, holding water in the form of snow until the spring months when it melts and fills reservoirs. The Los Angeles Basin in January has received 1.21 inches of rain.
“It’s a little sad looking today,” said Michelle Figueroa, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. “We’re hoping there’s going to be an uptick, and there’s been some snowfall we’re anticipating, but of course none of that can be entirely predictable. For now, we continue to push for [water] conservation.”
The department of water resources said this was the driest January in recent memory. In one year, farm fields have dried out and thousands of agricultural jobs have vanished statewide. Jeanine Jones with the DWR said the storms taking place the last two months are “simply not enough” to declare an end to the drought.
“Conditions are frankly not looking good because of the low snowpack,” Jones said. “The good news however is that we are, pitiful as it may seem, ahead of where we were last year at this time.” Jones added that it is still too early to tell if the state will need to continue the same water restrictions.
Meanwhile, the 60 wildfires that erupted throughout the state this month may represent a similar start to what Californians witnessed last year, according to Cal Fire.
“We are hoping for more rain, the next couple of months,” said Cal Fire spokesperson Daniel Berlant. “If that doesn’t happen, we’re going to have to begin staffing up much earlier than normal. When we see a lot of rain in December and no rain in January, it’s not able to soak into the trees and into the brush.”
