SRP water supply remains above normal despite dry, warm weather
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Last year’s monsoon was a dud and this winter was also warm and dry. It’s not a good combination for Arizona’s historic long-term drought, wildfire risks or the Valley’s all-important water supply.
The Salt River Project, or SRP, manages 7 reservoirs, which stores and provides over half of the water supply for the Phoenix-Metro. “Most of the water supply comes from the Salt and Verde Rivers and then groundwater and then the Colorado River. It’s actually almost evenly split three ways,” said SRP Climate Scientist and Meteorologist Bo Svoma.
According to SRP, the whole reservoir system is 70% full. “It’s actually above normal for this time of year, which of course is surprising given that we’ve had for a lot of the winter up until March. It was basically like the second or third driest winter ever,” he explained.
While a few March storms brought snow and rain across the state, Svoma said it wasn’t nearly enough to make a long term impact. The dry and warm forecast has also impacted the Colorado snowpack, which peaks in April. “That rainfall and snow melt just went into some really dry soils, and the creeks and streams that did flow in the higher elevation, that water got lost in the in the channels because the channels of the creeks and streams themselves are so dry. So it was just really hard for any of that water to make it all the way downhill into our reservoirs,” Svoma stated.
What we’re seeing this year is much different compared to 2023, when a very active winter kept nearly 80% of Arizona drought-free. “But the reservoirs are still above normal full. Like I said, 70% and that’s really because of the last two winters. We got to the highest storage ever in March of 2023,” he said.
There is perhaps some good news from experts who predict this year’s monsoon will lead to “above normal” precipitation for Arizona. However, because we’re still a few months away this prediction could certainly change.
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