The Golden State is Entirely Drought-Free for the First Time in a Quarter Century.
After a quarter-century span, every region of the state is enduring dryness. This landmark event comes on the heels of difficult years marked by a lack of precipitation that worsened wildfire risks and challenged its huge agribusiness.
A Chart Shows Zero Dryness
A recent update from the federal monitoring program illustrated that California in its entirety is without drought or abnormal dryness. This shift was driven by a period of heavy precipitation that topped up major reservoirs like Shasta and Oroville well above their typical levels.
“If you’re 25 or younger you’ve always lived in a world where California has been in or emerging from drought,” remarked a climate scientist.
After Severe Systems to Soggy Celebrations
Achieving this status featured powerful and fatal winter storms that pummeled the state in the not-too-distant past, leading to extensive inundation, power outages, and tragic losses. Even though those events helped ease the drought, they fell short of ending it.
Even into late December, pockets like northeastern California were still classified as unusually parched. Subsequent downpours at the beginning of January washed away those last vestiges of dryness.
Essential Mountain Snowfall Presents a Challenge
Yet, experts warn that being out of drought is not the same as having no water worries. Current readings of the Sierra Nevada snowpack indicate it is approximately 70 percent of the historical norm.
This snowpack, which supplies about a third of the state's water as it thaws later in the year, is a critical factor for future water availability. State experts have emphasized that it is too early to draw conclusions for the annual water supply.
“The current pattern right now is a higher ratio of rain to snow,” explained a California water official. “We’d like to see the snow accumulation to pick up by 1 April so that we’re approaching the typical mark.”
Even as the official status shows a clean slate, the next challenge is to sustaining this hard-won hydrological health for the months to come.
