-September 8,2022-
Looking for a bit of silver lining to an endless drought? Before the rainy season this winter regulators are storing more water according to the state’s latest reservoir report than they did last year. Despite dry conditions downstream a number of key Sierra reservoirs hold more water than the same time in 2021 that was also a drought year.
Today the state’s largest federal reservoir, Shasta, is hurting with just 1.6 milAF at 35% of capacity as of Sept 5. Still, that is improved over last year at this time when only 1.2 milAF was in storage.
Likewise at the largest California-managed reservoir – Oroville -that sits at 1.3 milAF compared to just 800,000AF as of Sept 5, 2021.
Folsom, above Sacramento, holds 423,000AF. But in September 2021 the lake held just 236,000AF.
A key Valley reservoir near Los Banos -San Luis Reservoir – holds 558,000AF compared to just 265,000AF at this time last year.
Above Fresno, Millerton is storing more with 250,00AF vs 232,000AF last year at this time. Friant Water estimates that adding what is in Millerton and the upper reservoirs on the San Joaquin watershed that there are 65,000AF more than last year at this time.
Several reservoirs are not better off in 2022 including Trinity and New Melones.
One big local reservoir that does not show improvement this year – Pine Flat – has just 132,000AF with a capacity of one millionAF. Last year at this time, it held over 200,000AF. Kings River water officials say Valley irrigators drained more of the lake this year because, of course, they needed it. With the low level in the lake now they are not likely to draw it down more this year.
By the way, Kings River watershed did get a pulse of precipitation from that August monsoon storm that hit the Valley adding up to an extra 20,000AF -unusual for summers.
Adding it all up, the latest Department of Water Resources report says California has 17.2 million acre-feet in storage this year compared to 15.4 million acre-feet this time last year.
That is 68 percent of average for this time and 45% of capacity.
This week we are all focusing on the heat- Merced was 116 degrees, which broke the previous all-time record. But there are thunderstorms in the Sierra too.
Speaking of rain,Hanford NWS forecasters are watching moisture from a Baja hurricane moving into So California and Arizona this weekend predicting the Sierra could get some modest precipitation. We’ll take it.