Our Drought Returns.
September 30 marks the end of the rain year. This year we’ve returned to drought conditions receiving only 8.72 inches of precipitation, far below the 22-year average of 18.80 inches we usually receive. Last year was the only wet year over average we’ve experienced in the last seven years.
Currently we are experiencing a neutral condition between the dry La Niña conditions and the wet El Niño conditions. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is predicting a 50-55 percent chance of El Niño conditions developing this fall, increasing to 65-70 percent by winter, which could bode well for our rain chances in the upcoming wet season. At press time, rain was in the forecast for the first week in October. If so, we’ll update the charts in the next issue.