FARMINGTON, N.M. (AP) - Recent storms have made little dent in the drought affecting the Four Corners region, forecasters said this week.
A series of storms earlier this month brought about an inch of rain to San Juan County in a 10-day period that ended last week, according to Brent Wachter, a National Weather Service meteorologist. More thunderstorms and rain were expected for Memorial Day weekend. But even so, the U.S. Drought Monitor indicated that 15 percent of New Mexico, including San Juan County, still falls into the category of severe drought.
The state received an above average amount of rain in the spring but the snowmelt will likely be below normal for a fifth year, the Daily Times in Farmington reported (https://bit.ly/1IVJbgz).
Susan Novak Behery, a hydraulic engineer with the Bureau of Reclamation, said it would have been more helpful if the showers had been snow to boost the snowmelt. However, the rain has raised the predicted inflow into the Navajo Reservoir. The inflow is likely to be 41 percent of the historical average, 10 percent more than predicted in April.
“We like the moisture in any way it can come,” Behery said.
She said the lower than average level in the reservoir means the bureau won’t have an annual spring peak release. There isn’t enough water for a release to help endangered fish.
New Mexico has been through four straight years of severe drought and the last decade has seen more dry years than wet ones. However, the last two monsoon seasons have helped and forecasts call for above-normal chances for precipitation this spring.
Extreme drought also dropped off New Mexico’s map in March - the first time that’s happened in four years.
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Information from: The Daily Times, https://www.daily-times.com
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