Powell Runoff Season Didn't Even Reach July; Reservoir Below 49% Capacity; April Next Likely Gain

[hatrack]

From NASA: Note - this image dates back to April 26th.

FRISCO — With May inflow into Lake Powell less than half the long-term average, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is projecting that total reservoir storage in the Colorado River Basin will dip to about 29.3 million acre feet. That’s just 49 percent of storage capacity and the lowest level since the peak of the early 2000s drought, when the 2005 water year started with storage at 29.8 million acre feet (50 percent of capacity). More Lake Powell water info here: http://lakepowell.water-data.com/.

May’s inflow into Lake Powell was 1,121 thousand acre-feet, about 48 percent of average — a stark reminder that winter and spring precipitation was well below average in large parts of the Colorado River Basin, despite a surge of late-season moisture in the headwaters region of north-central Colorado. But at least the May inflow was an improvement from April, when inflow was only about a third of average.

After releasing about 602,000 acre-feet downstream, Lake Powell’s elevation at the end of May was at about 3,599 feet, which is about 100 feet below full. According to BuRec, the reservoir elevation is expected to remain within several feet of the current elevation throughout spring and summer as inflow from runoff roughly matches reservoir releases. In late summer, the reservoir elevation will begin to decline again.

For the April to July runoff season, water managers are now projecint that total inflow will be about 3 million acre feet, which is about 42 percent of the average inflow for the 1981 to 2010 period, with the overall water supply outlook remaining significantly below average. Lake Powell will probably end the current water year at just 44 percent of capacity.

EDIT

http://summitcountyvoice.com/2013/06/21/climate-another-grim-year-for-lake-powell/

Daily updates at: http://lakepowell.water-data.com/