West Palm Beach, FL
- South Florida water levels are near the top of their normal ranges to start the dry season because of heavy rainfall at the start of 2016 and near-average wet season rainfall.
South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) water managers
today predicted a low risk of drought conditions or water supply shortages in the coming months.
"Water levels are where we want them at the Nov. 1 start of the dry season," said SFWMD Chief Engineer John Mitnik. "The goal is to maintain balanced water management to meet supply needs while providing flood control."
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South Florida's Dry Season
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- November - May
- 18 inches of rain on average
- May and October are important transition months
- March, April and May have the highest evaporation rates and lowest rainfall
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South Florida's Year-Round Landscape Irrigation Conservation Measures remain in place and do not change with the seasons. An explanation of the measures by county can be found on SFWMD's website at:
www.sfwmd.gov/2days
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Wet Season Summary
The last 12 months (Nov. 15 - Oct 16.) was the wettest 12-month period since 1994-1995 and the second wettest 12-month period since 1959-1960. The wettest January since 1932 and near
-average rainfall for much of the 16-county region during the wet season, spanning June 1 to Oct. 31, sustained water levels.
An average of 33.13 inches fell between Orlando and the Florida Keys during the wet season, representing
96 percent of average, or just 1.26 inches below average.
The wet season ended with below-average
October rainfall, with 3.21 inches representing 80 percent of average, or 0.80 inches below average.
