(With expanded coverage of all the Western States)
by Patrick Ruckert
www.californiadroughtupdate.org/20240215-California-Water-and-Infrastructure-Report.pdf
A Note to Readers
The freight train of winter storms continue this week in California, with an impact also in the Rockies.
The snowpack in both the Sierras and the Rockies show a marked improvement over the early January measurements.
Three more atmospheric rivers are hitting the state now through the weekend.
The reservoirs in California are largely full, with water releases taking place at some to make room for the water flowing in from the new storms.
Overall, quite a different condition for the state’s water supply than has been the case most of the last quarter century. But, have no doubt, drought will be with us once again, if not this year, then perhaps the next.
Edward Ring has a new article this week, comparing the $30 billion that the planned Delta Tunnel will cost to build, just to deliver 500,000 acre feet of water to the Central Valley and Southern California, for less money, to build recycling, desalination, and new dams and reservoirs, to provide much more than five million acre feet of water for even more regions of the state.
On the Colorado River, the increase of the snowpack and the atmospheric rivers over the last month has seen a significant rise in the level of Lake Mead, now up to 37% of capacity. And the snowpack in the Rockies is now up to 97% of the average for this date.
Finally, under the title, “Advances in Science and Technology are the Foundation for All Infrastructure,” is our Feature for this week.
