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While the December-January storms may not exactly have been the ultimate solution to the ongoing drought, the 32 trillion gallons of water that fell across California certainly left a welcome impact on our reservoirs that were hitting critically low levels and brought vibrant greens back to dry vegetation and fields. According to the UC Berkley Central Sierra Snow Lab, on Jan 15th the precipitation levels were up to 204% of the average at this point in the water year which extends from October 1- September 30. Our current capabilities are far from being able to completely capture the excessive amounts of rainfall and much of that water made its way back to the ocean, however, what our complex water system and reservoirs were able to collect has left us with a much brighter outlook on the season.
Ten out of California’s seventeen major water supply reservoirs are currently measuring levels above the historical average including the state's second-largest reservoir Lake Oroville, which is sitting at 62% capacity, or 110% of its historical average. The largest reservoir in California is Lake Shasta with a capacity of 4552 thousand acre-feet, it is currently at 55% capacity which is a 23% improvement over the reported level one month ago, just before the atmospheric rivers and bomb cyclones hit the state.
Water restrictions remain in place across the state at this time. Please check your local water jurisdictions for more information on current restrictions.
Let’s keep California Green!
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